The Indiana Fever put up big numbers in the preseason finale on Saturday, defeating the Nigerian national team 105-57 at home.
The 48-point win came off the efforts of the entire team. Star starting trio Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell put the Fever in excellent position. In the second half, with Indiana holding a 41-point lead, head coach Stephanie White opted to sit her starters in order to test the team’s bench.
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Clark, who had a slight knock during the Fever’s loss to the Dallas Wings on Thursday, seemed just fine in Saturday’s game. The star guard put up 12 points and four assistants in the first half of the game.
Boston had missed out on Thursday’s game with a minor injury, and was a little tepid in her initial return, with four points, six assists and only one rebound for the center.
Mitchell, though, was dominant as always, leading the team with 17 points and going three-for-three from beyond the arc.
With the Clark-Boston-Mitchell trio, plus starters Monique Billings and Sophie Cunningham, on the bench in the second half, the Fever’s reserves took over the beatdown on Nigeria. Forward Damiris Dontas had a strong night with 16 points off the bench, while Makayla Timpson pitched in 12 points.
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Nigeria’s effort was relatively even-handed, with nearly every player getting some points on the board, but only one, Shay Ijiwoye, broke double digits. Overall, it’s been a tough preseason tour for the Nigerian team, who lost 89-63 to the Los Angeles Sparks and 88-79 to the Minnesota Lynx before Saturday’s game.
With the final preseason game complete, White and the Fever will focus entirely on the regular season, which begins next week. Indiana will host the Wings again for the season opener next Friday, with the hopes of a different result against Paige Bueckers and company.
