It was another disappointing outing for the Indiana Fever on Sunday. They logged their second straight loss to fall to 6-7 on the season, this time suffering defeat at the hands of A’ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces.
What makes this loss more frustrating is the fact that the Fever’s strong start was erased by their second-half collapse. After entering the halftime break with a 42-36 advantage, Indiana let Las Vegas cut down the lead to just three points at the end of the third period.
The Aces then went on to outscore the Fever, 31-20, in the final frame, which resulted in Las Vegas completing the comeback win, 89-81.
Caitlin Clark had another forgettable performance in this one, shooting just 7-of-20 overall and 1-of-10 from three-point territory for 19 points.
The Fever lost on Thursday as well, suffering an 88-77 defeat against the Golden State Valkyries. Clark registered 11 points in that one on 3-of-14 shooting and 0-of-7 from beyond the arc.
Fever head coach Stephanie White spoke to reporters after the game, and she got brutally honest about Clark’s shooting woes. According to the Indiana shot-caller, it’s all about the team making the necessary adjustments to help their superstar get out of her slump.
“I think the biggest thing is what we have to do as a staff to get her better looks, like, higher quality looks,” White said. “Every game plan is going to be to make her score inside the three-point line, and the different ways that they’re going to do that. Physicality, coverage, showing bodies, you know, all the different things.
“We have to do a better job of getting her higher-quality looks.
White then went on to reveal what she’s most worried about after this loss–and it’s not about Clark’s poor shooting.
“I’m not worried about Caitlin’s shot,” White said. “Caitlin’s shot is going to be just fine. The thing I’m worried about is our (16) turnovers for 28 points.”
As White said in her postgame interview, it’s the team’s turnovers that are the main cause for concern for her. Indiana has now turned the ball over 32 times over their last two games, and there’s no denying that this has emerged as a serious problem for this squad.
Despite White’s lack of concern over Clark’s shooting slump, it’s worth noting that the reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year has also struggled to take care of the ball of late. She committed six turnovers against the Valkyries on Thursday, followed by another eight turnovers on Sunday.
Based on her postgame comments, it is also clear that turnovers will be an issue that White and her coaching staff will address in the coming days.
Related: WNBA Issues A’ja Wilson Statement After Aces Defeat Caitlin Clark, Fever
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