Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever lost to the Las Vegas Aces in Game 1 of their first-round series in the WNBA playoffs. Now, they are facing a must-win Game 2 in order to avoid elimination.
The Fever’s defeat in the playoff opener certainly isn’t encouraging. The Aces blew them out 102-85, with Indiana trailing by as many as 27 points.
The Big 3 of Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston combined for only 45 points. In comparison, Aces star A’ja Wilson had 38 points, while Jackie Young tallied 21 points.
Considering that the Fever have less than 48 hours to make adjustments to close the gap against the Aces, it’s certainly hard to say whether they can bounce back and win Game 2 to extend the series.
Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images via Reuters Connect
However, it’s worth noting that ESPN’s Matchup Predictor slightly favors the Fever to beat the Aces in Game 2. Indiana has been given a 52.4% chance to win the contest, while Las Vegas is at 47.6%.
The Fever are playing at home on Tuesday, which is likely why they have been given the advantage. After all, Indiana finished the season with a 15-7 record at home.
It’s also worth noting that in the Fever’s last five games at home during the regular season, they went 4-1. However, the Aces did beat them when they last played at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Aug. 6.
Fever head coach Stephanie White cited their turnovers as a major factor in their Game 1 loss, while Clark stated that their actions were “sloppy” and the plays they ran were not particularly effective.
That being said, it will be interesting to see if the Fever can address those issues given the limited time they have.
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