At first glance, this matchup between the Fever and the Lynx looks like a bit of a mismatch. Minnesota's at home, and with a 21-8 record they're sitting at first in the Western Conference. The Fever, meanwhile, have a 13-15 record, and they're seventh in the playoff standings.
Not so fast. Indiana is the one team no one wants to meet right now, largely due to the superb play of rookie Caitlin Clark and the rapport she's established with former ROY Aliyah Boston. Clark is white-hot right now, and she and Boston are making opponents sit up and take notice as the Fever try to complete their three-game sweep against some top-tier teams in the West.
Game Details
Fixture: Indiana Fever @ Minnesota Lynx
Date and Time: August 24th, 2024 @ 8:00 PM EST
Location: Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
Indiana Fever Team Review
The Fever has been a different team since the Olympic break. They've beaten Seattle and Phoenix in back-to-back games, so if they can turn their back-to-back wins into a three-game sweep it will represent an impressive turn of events.
Clark was the headliner in these games, of course. She put up 29 points against Phoenix, then followed that effort with a 23-point and nine-assist effort against Seattle as Indiana won, going away by a 92-75 count.
But Clark isn't the only reason the Fever is surging. She's getting plenty of support inside from Aliyah Boston, and Kelsey Mitchell had 27 points against the Storm, including some 5 for 8 three-point marksmanship. It's all good for Indiana right now, and they'll pose a stiff challenge for the Lynx.
Minnesota Lynx Team Review
The Lynx are the best in the West right now, and they're also surging. They've won five straight, including back-to-back wins against both Washington and Las Vegas.
The two wins against Vegas were especially impressive. They gave Minnesota some breathing room at the top of the standings, and Napheesa Collier has been leading the charge. Collier dominated the first win over Vegas with 27 points and 18 rebounds, while MVP candidate Wilson had 24 in their second victory.
Minnesota currently sits third in the overall playoff standings, but they're just a half-game behind Connecticut, so they'll be looking to move up. Indiana is no mismatch, though, so this promises to be a tough battle.
Who to Watch
Indiana Fever
Everyone knows about Caitlin Clark, and more and more people are starting to notice Boston's inside game, so we'll go with Mitchell in this one as the player to watch. She's scored 55 points in the last two games, and if she continues to post points at anything close to that level, Indiana will be that much tougher.
If her shot stalls, though, it's all about Clark and Boston again. Indiana is rested and ready after a layoff of nearly a week as Indiana's schedule slows up a little after a frenetic pace against marquee opponents that saw them struggle out of the gate.
Minnesota Lynx
Collier has been on a serious roll lately, with point totals of 27, 23, and 30, respectively, in Minnesota's last three games, so we'll tag her as the player to watch in this one. She's dominant in just about every statistical category for the Lynx, averaging 20.7 points to go with 10.2 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game.
She'll need plenty of support against Indiana's emerging Big 3, though, so keep an eye on Kayla McBride, who averages 15.7 per game. Alanna Smith and Courtney Williams round out the Minnesota scorers, and Williams is the assist leader at 5.4.
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