Indiana Fever Defeats Atlanta Dream in Close Match

ATLANTA — In a thrilling game, Natasha Howard led the Indiana Fever to an 81-76 victory over the Atlanta Dream on Thursday night, much to the delight of a sold-out crowd. This win allowed them to split the two-game series this week, having previously lost to Atlanta 91-90 in Indiana.

Notably, Kate Clark struggled with her long-range shooting, missing all five of her three-point attempts. This game marks the end of a remarkable 140-game winning streak for her, which spans the WNBA, playoffs, and significant periods of her college career at Iowa. Interestingly, she had also gone scoreless from beyond the arc back on January 13, 2022.

During the third quarter, both Clark and her teammate Aliya Boston found themselves in foul trouble and had to sit out early. In total, Clark managed to score 11 points and dished out six assists.

Kelsey Mitchell made a crucial three-pointer that put Indiana up by one point at 76-75. Then, Clark assisted Boston on a layup, marking Boston’s second field goal of the evening and extending Indiana’s lead to 79-76.

The standout for Atlanta was Rhyne Howard, who racked up 24 points. It’s worth noting that before the game, Clark mentioned enjoying the recent playoff performance of the NBA’s Indiana Pacers, who won a nail-biter against the New York Knicks just the day before, securing a 138-135 victory.

In her debut, Sophie Cunningham contributed nine points for Indiana after recovering from a sprained right ankle. Manager Stephanie White stated that Cunningham was cleared to play without minute restrictions.

In other news, the Dream announced that Jordan Canada, who has been sidelined with a right knee injury, will soon resume basketball activities.

Due to high demand, the game was relocated to State Farm Arena, home of the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. Just before the game started, it was confirmed that the arena, with a capacity of 16,888, was sold out, compared to the usual 3,500 capacity at the Dream’s regular venue.