After squeaking out a one-point win in the final seconds on Tuesday, the visiting Atlanta Dream will look to post their second win in three days against the Indiana Fever on Thursday.
Atlanta (1-1) led for the entire second half on Tuesday, before a late 10-0 Indiana run pulled the Fever ahead by one with 21.7 seconds left. Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard then nailed a pair of free throws with less than 10 seconds remaining, securing an impressive 91-90 road victory.
In her second game with the team, Brittney Griner led the way with 21 points and Howard followed with 20. First-year Atlanta head coach Karl Smesko tallied his first WNBA win.
“It was nice to see everybody contribute to a winning effort,” Smesko said. “I’m just proud of our players and all the contributions they made. I thought our players off the bench all made huge plays that really helped make a difference.”
An effective tandem through two games has been the duo of Brionna Jones (17.5 points per game and 11.5 rebounds per game) and Griner (19.5 points per game and 8.0 rebounds per game). Smesko is grateful to have the seasoned veterans.
“Bri Jones is a great player,” Smesko said. “We’re really excited about the thought of her and BG working together.”
Indiana (1-1) followed its contentious season-opening blowout of the Chicago Sky with the setback on Tuesday, despite Caitlin Clark’s 27 points and 11 assists. Clark continued her rapid ascent as a second-year star, posting the 10th 20-point, 10-assist game in her young career, tying Courtney Vandersloot’s WNBA record. Clark accomplished the feat in just 42 career games to Vandersloot’s 430.
The 23-year-old phenom sees the Fever’s first loss as an opportunity to grow ahead of the rematch on Thursday.
“It stinks. We want to win every game,” Clark said. “But I think it’s great for our team. It’s a little bit of adversity. That’s why this league is so great. You get a couple days and then get right back to it. We have a chance to go down there and play them and get some redemption if we play well.”
Along with Clark’s team-leading 23.5 points and 10.5 assists per game, Aliyah Boston adds 21.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per contest.
–Field Level Media
