ATLANTA — Kelsey Mitchell scored 29 points, including the clinching free throws with five seconds left, Caitlin Clark added 19 points and the Indiana Fever disappointed a record Atlanta crowd by holding off the Dream 84-79 on Monday night.
In the closing seconds, and without a timeout, Atlanta missed two 3-pointers but grabbed two offensive rebounds before fumbling the ball away, which led to Mitchell’s free throws.
Aliyah Boston had 14 points and 11 rebounds for Indiana, and Damiris Dantas scored 11 off the bench to help give the Fever (14-16) their most wins in a season since going 17-17 in 2016. Clark had four 3-pointers, tying the rookie-season record of 85 by Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard in 2022.
Clark also added seven assists and seven rebounds to her long-distance shooting stat line. It was her 21st game this season with at least 15 points and five assists, which is the most in a season in WNBA history, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
“Our chemistry has improved,” Clark said of the Fever’s recent play, adding that for her individually, she is “really excited because I feel like there’s so many areas for me to continue to get better, and that’s exciting as a player.”
Atlanta (10-19), which started the day a half-game out of the final playoff spot, trailed by 18 early in the second half when Clark hit a 3-pointer before outscoring the Fever 41-32. The Dream got within two before Indiana had a five-point possession to blunt the rally.
Tina Charles scored 21 to lead Atlanta, which moved the game to the home of the Atlanta Hawks and set an attendance record of 17,608, surpassing the crowd that showed up for the previous contest against the Fever (17,575). Howard had 16 points, Allisha Gray added 12 — none after receiving a flagrant foul from Boston midway through the third quarter — and Jordin Canada scored 10 for the Dream.
Howard’s 3 pulled Atlanta to 76-74 with 4:13 to play, but after grabbing an offensive rebound, Clark found Lexie Hull for an and-1 layup a minute later. Hull rebounded her missed free throw and fed Mitchell for an and-1 layup that she converted for an 81-74 lead.
Nia Coffey made a 3 for Atlanta with just under a minute to play to make it 82-79.
Mitchell had 15 points and Boston 12 on combined 12-of-21 shooting as the Fever took a 52-38 halftime lead.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, Mitchell has 105 points combined over Indiana’s past four games, equaling the record she set last year for most points in a four-game span in Fever history.
At halftime, the gold medal team from the 1996 Atlanta Olympics was honored.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
