A Hawkeye vs. Buckeye subplot always hits a little different. This time, the buck really did manage to outdo the hawk. On Friday night, Kelsey Mitchell (Ohio State’s finest) showed up with double digits (27 points). During that, she officially soared past teammate Caitlin Clark to take sole possession of a Fever franchise record. That game was her 20th with 20-plus points this season. It broke the three-way tie with Clark (the former Iowa darling) and the legend Tamika Catchings herself.

But for better or worse, all that Buckeye brilliance wasn’t enough to save Indiana, neither on Friday nor on Sunday. Back when the Lynx were Collier-less, Mitchell’s explosion still came in a 95-90 loss. Fast forward to last night, and the return of Napheesa Collier turned that 5-point gap into a canyon. Kelsey Mitchell poured in another strong 26-point effort, and Napheesa Collier drowned it with her commanding 32-point masterpiece.

Indiana’s head coach, Stephanie White, saw it coming. An interviewer asked pregame, “Coach, uh, Phee is one of the best players in the league. How does that affect the the game plan?” White was calm, but she pointed: “Attention to detail and how they use her. It’s different than how they use the bigs they have on the floor right now—a lot of inverted looks, things we’ll have to be aware of. For us, it continues to be, we’ve got to be more disruptive consistently.” To Mitchell’s credit, she took that to heart. With 2:43 left in the third quarter, she was in full-throttle defense when Jessica Shepard caught her across the face.

That foul sent her to the floor and earned Shepard a flagrant 1. White’s words were “Make sure they can’t get the rhythm and timing,” and they played out in real time as Kelsey Mitchell nearly sacrificed an eye to execute the plan. But in the end, Napheesa Collier’s versatility was just too much. White even said it: “Phee, of course, complicates things because of her versatility.” Napheesa Collier proved it by going 11-of-16 from the field. Apart from her, Lynx’s Courtney Williams added a double-double (14 points, 10 assists), while Kayla McBride and Maria Kliundikova chipped in 13 each.

The result comes out to be: two games, two losses for Indiana, all within 72 hours. The Lynx (30-7) are now just two wins away from locking up the top playoff seed. Whereas the Fever (19-18) have slipped to eighth. They are just two games ahead of Los Angeles and staring down a four-team dogfight with the Storm, Valkyries, and Sparks for the final three postseason spots. The Fever would have never been in this spot if the injury bug hadn’t gotten them. But they are doing everything to overcome that, and here’s how their latest move played out…

Kelsey Mitchell’s Newest Teammate

Following their earlier loss to the Lynx, the front office in Indiana was proactive. Their roster had been severely impacted by injuries. The incidents include Sophie Cunningham’s season-ending MCL tear on August 17 and Chloe Bibby being out with a left knee problem. This situation prompted the Fever to make a move on Saturday, August 23. They signed the veteran guard Aerial Powers to a seven-day hardship contract.

Powers is a well-known player to WNBA followers; she was originally the fifth overall selection in the 2016 draft by the Dallas Wings. She has built a nine-year career that includes time with the Atlanta Dream, the Minnesota Lynx, and a championship-winning period with the Washington Mystics in 2019. Her most recent stop was a short stint with the Golden State Valkyries. The Valkyries released her on June 25 after she appeared in only two games.

Now, she is sporting number 23 for Indiana. Powers had almost no time to get acclimated; she practiced only for a single shootaround before Sunday’s game. However, she provided the Fever with their most critical need: additional depth. During her first game, she played for 18 minutes, contributing five points and securing five rebounds. That performance wasn’t really spectacular, but it was what was needed at the time.

Currently, the Fever have three players on their roster signed via hardship contracts. This just highlights how stretched their lineup has become. For a team that is battling to maintain its hold on the eighth and final playoff spot, having every available player is crucial. While the addition of Powers might not immediately change their position in the standings, for Indiana, her arrival provides some much-needed flexibility. It also adds another experienced veteran to rely on…