Indiana Fever at Seattle Storm Sunday, August 3
Climate Pledge Arena | 3:00 p.m. ET
Broadcast Information TV: ABC
Radio: 93.5/107.5 The Fan
Probable Starters
Indiana Fever (16-12)
Guard – Aari McDonald Guard – Kelsey Mitchell Forward – Sophie Cunningham Forward – Natasha Howard
Center – Aliyah Boston
Seattle Storm (16-12)
Guard – Erica Wheeler Guard – Skylar Diggins Forward – Gabby Williams Forward – Nneka Ogwumike
Center – Ezi Magbegor
GAME PREVIEW:
The Fever (16-12) bring their four-game win streak to the West Coast on Sunday, when they visit Seattle to take on the Storm (16-12) in a game with significant implications on the playoff race.
Indiana has surged into fifth place in the WNBA standings after reeling off four straight wins. They’re technically tied for fifth with Seattle, but currently own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Storm thanks to a 94-86 win in Seattle on June 24. The Fever can lock up the tiebreaker with a victory on Sunday, but if Seattle wins, then the third and final regular season between the two teams on Aug. 26 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse will determine the tiebreaker.
With 16 games remaining on their regular season schedule, Fever are now just a half-game back of fourth-place Phoenix, a game back of third-place Atlanta, and a game and a half back of second-place New York. The top four teams in the final standings get homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Indiana is coming off an 88-78 win on Friday night in Dallas in the first stop of a four-game road trip. All-Star guard Kelsey Mitchell scored a game-high 23 points in the victory, point guard Aari McDonald added 15 points and six assists, and both All-Star center Aliyah Boston (12 points and 11 rebounds) and Natasha Howard (11 points and 16 boards) recorded double-doubles. Howard and Boston combined for 10 of the Fever’s 14 offensive rebounds.
The Storm, meanwhile, are coming off a 108-106 loss to the Sparks in double overtime, dropping a dramatic contest on Dearica Hamby’s game-winning layup with 4.3 seconds remaining. Nneka Ogwumike was outstanding despite the loss, tallying a season-high 37 points to go along with 12 rebounds.
Seattle is led by its pair of All-Stars in Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins. Ogwumike averages 18.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while Diggins contributes 17 points and 5.9 assists per contest.
