Stephanie White’s Indiana Fever are back on track after losing two games. Backed by a roaring 16,000+ crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, the Fever cruised to a 99-82 win over the high-flying Atlanta Dream. And they did it without Caitlin Clark’s usual scoring punch. The superstar guard, still in the middle of a shooting slump, couldn’t impact the game with her scoring, but that didn’t stop the Fever from winning the game. And coach White was quick to highlight the real reason behind the impressive win.
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Powered by Kelsey Mitchell’s 25 points, Aliyah Boston’s 19, and a 16-point double-double from Sophie Cunningham, the Fever cruised past a full-strength Dream squad featuring Allisha Gray, Brittney Griner, and Rhyne Howard. It was exactly the kind of statement win Indiana needed. Now sitting at 10-10, the Fever will be hoping this marks the beginning of a strong push in the second half of the season.
Such has been the case for the Fever throughout the season, right from the pre-season. It all began with Caitlin Clark’s leg injury in the preseason. That left quad injury saw her miss 5 games. To make matters worse, during that stretch, the Fever lost Sophie Cunningham and Sydney Colson in the 83-85 loss to the Connecticut Sun earlier in the season. Caitlin came back roaring against the New York Liberty and scored 32 points, leading them to victory against the defending champions.
But that dopamine rush of having Clark back lasted just four games before she went down again, and this time with a groin injury. The signs were there. Her shooting struggles were already raising eyebrows as she went 1-for-23 from beyond the arc before news of the groin issue surfaced. And as we all know, she missed another 5 games. To make matters more complicated, Damiris Dantas also missed a few games during this stretch due to national team duties with the Brazilian National Team. So, this, in fact, is the first time Coach White has had her full team fit at the same time!
Since coming back from her injury, Clark hasn’t been able to show her true self yet. Coach Stephanie White also addressed this issue in the press conference.
Stephanie White talks about Caitlin Clark’s shooting slump
Caitlin Clark’s shooting slump continued after returning from the injury. She went just 1-of-7 from beyond the arc tonight against the Dream and 2-of-5 against the Valkyries. In total, she’s scored 22 points on 31.35% shooting from the field. Not ideal! Coach White addressed this issue in the post-game press conference.
“Every shot she shoots looks like it’s going in to me,” White said. “I know it doesn’t mean anything that I’m not worried about Caitlin’s shot. She’s recovering from injury. She plays heavy, hard minutes. Every defensive assignment, every defensive scout, she’s at the top of the scouting report.”
It goes without saying that Clark is still finding ways to be effective in the game despite her shooting trouble. She has had 15 assists since coming back and grabbed 9 boards as well. Knowing the superstar that she is, it’s only a matter of time before she figures things out and comes back roaring. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know about it in the comments down below!
