LOS ANGELES – The Indiana Fever‘s five-game win streak came to an end Tuesday night, as they lost to the Los Angeles Sparks, 100-91, at Crypto.com Arena.
The Sparks win was nearly wire-to-wire, leading by as many as 22 points in the third quarter. While Indiana went on a 21-5 run to get back within single digits in the fourth, it wasn’t enough to eke out a win.
The loss moves the Fever to 17-13 on the season.
Here are three observations:
Indiana Fever lose to Sparks for third time this season
The Fever have had a lot of recent success. Coming into Los Angeles, they were on a five-game win streak, beating top-half teams like Phoenix and Seattle, and were hitting their stride as a team without its star player
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That crumbled against the Sparks — a team that inexplicably has given the Fever issues all year.
Los Angeles is currently out of the playoff picture, sitting 10th in the standings, while Indiana is firmly in the playoff hunt at fifth. But the Fever are 0-3 against the Sparks this season, with two losses coming at Gainbridge Fieldhouse and one now at Crypto.com Arena.
It’s not an explainable phenomenon; the Fever are, on paper, a better team than the Sparks. But Los Angeles has dominated every meeting, starting with a two-point win then continuing with a double-digit fourth-quarter comeback in Gainbridge Fieldhouse and a wire-to-wire win on Tuesday night.
The Fever have one more chance to get a win against the Sparks, as they’ll return to Los Angeles at the end of August.
Kelsey Mitchell leads all scorers with 34 points
Despite a Fever loss, Kelsey Mitchell came close to a career night on Tuesday.
After two off games in Dallas and Seattle, Mitchell finished Tuesday’s game with 34 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the field (7-of-12 from 3-point range), She was four off of her career high of 38 points and two 3-pointers away from tying her own franchise record.
She was the one that kept the Fever in the game as much as possible, burning the Sparks defense with her ability to get downhill and have a great night beyond the arc.
It wasn’t enough for a Fever win on Tuesday, though, especially considering the Fever had just two points off the bench.
Play briefly stops because of green sex toy
Another neon green sex toy was thrown onto a WNBA court during Tuesday night’s Fever vs. Sparks game.
The item was thrown onto the court from the baseline seats after free throws from Sparks guard Kelsey Plum in the second quarter. It appeared to hit Fever guard Sophie Cunningham, who jumped back in surprise after she noticed what it was.
Plum kicked it off the court, and it was immediately covered with towels. At the same time, multiple members of security rushed up the baseline stairs to find the fan who threw it.
This is the third time in recent weeks that a sex toy has been thrown on the court in a WNBA game. It happened in Atlanta on July 29, then again in Chicago on Aug. 1.
Chloe Peterson is the Indiana Fever beat reporter for IndyStar. Reach her at [email protected] or follow her on X at @chloepeterson67. Get IndyStar’s Indiana Fever and Caitlin Clark coverage sent directly to your inbox with our Caitlin Clark Fever newsletter.
