After the Phoenix Mercury and Indiana Fever engaged in a heated altercation that resulted in six technical fouls and one ejection on June 22, the second of a two-game set wasn’t as spirited as the Mercury gutted out a 111-109 win Wednesday, June 24.
Kahleah Copper led the Mercury (6-13) with 28 points on 6-of-10 shooting and contributed 15 points from the free throw line. Alyssa Thomas added 24 points with eight assists. With Natasha Mack out with a foot injury, DeWanna Bonner stepped up on the glass with eight rebounds.
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“I couldn’t be more proud of the group,” coach Nate Tibbetts told reporters. “We’ve faced a lot of stuff here early in the season. A lot of change, a lot of injuries with Mack being out tonight. It’s been quite a journey, but we came out and played our butts off tonight and really for the whole game.
“We’ve lost quite a few of those games here to start the year, for us to have that belief and make plays down the stretch in such a tough environment is such a testament to our will.”
Unlike in the previous meeting, where the Mercury allowed only six points in the first quarter, Caitlin Clark got hot quickly and scored 13 of the Fever’s 35 first-quarter points.
But the Mercury countered with a 12-2 run in the second quarter led by Bonner, who finished the quarter with 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting and was 2-of-3 from 3-point range.
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The Fever’s offense shifted when Clark left the game with 5:15 remaining in the third quarter after tweaking her back. She finished with 19 points and was 3-of-4 from 3-point range in 20 minutes.
While it wasn’t known what specifically caused her exit, she looked to be in discomfort after she was fouled by Mercury forward Valeriane Ayayi on a 3-pointer in the second quarter and was rubbing her back when she stood up.
With Clark out, the Fever relied heavily on Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston. Mitchell finished with 30 points and challenged the Mercury tremendously, but Phoenix gained some relief when the Fever were down by one possession and Mitchell fouled out on an offensive foul going against Copper with 22 seconds remaining.
The Fever needed a 3-pointer in the final six seconds for the lead, but the Mercury’s defense forced them to settle for a two-point shot. The Fever still had a chance in the final seconds, but Copper’s steal off Raven Johnson sealed the game.
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The Mercury shot well down the stretch, going 10-of-13 (76.9%) in the fourth quarter. It also helped that the Mercury earned 12 free throw attempts to the Fever’s two. Phoenix finished 26 of 33 from the line, while Indiana was 18-for-19.
Tibbetts liked his team’s pace and said it helped them win after dropping the first of the two-game set.
“We played quite a bit faster,” Tibbetts added. “They were shooting 75% from the field and 75% from the 3 at the end of the first (quarter) and we were down six (points) at that time. We just stayed with it and didn’t hang our heads. We kept competing, and when you do that, good things happen for you.”
Phoenix will continue the three-game road trip with the Toronto Tempo on Saturday, June 27, before heading back to Phoenix for a break.
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Reach the reporter or send tips for stories at jenna.ortiz@arizonarepublic.com, as well as @jennarortiz on X.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Caitlin Clark exits game, Mercury counter with win vs Fever
