INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Kelsey Mitchell scored 28 points, Caitlin Clark had 20 points and 13 assists for her fifth straight double-double and the Indiana Fever beat the short-handed Phoenix Mercury 95-86 on Friday night.
Kahleah Copper scored 20 of her 36 points in the fourth quarter as the Mercury trimmed what had been a 31-point third-quarter deficit to single digits.
Mitchell gave Indiana an 81-50 lead with 1:55 left in the third quarter before the Mercury scored the next 17 to get with in 81-67 on Sophie Cunningham’s 3-pointer. Copper converted a shot in the lane with 5:02 left to get Phoenix within 85-76.
Clark tied the franchise record with her 13th assist on a cross-court pass to Mitchell for a 3-pointer and a 92-83 lead with 1:33 left.
Phoenix’s comeback came without center Brittney Griner, who collided with a teammate in the first half and stayed on the floor before a timeout was called. The team announced Griner would not return due to a right hip injury. The Mercury were already without starters Diana Taurasi (leg) and Natasha Cloud (knee).
Copper scored 23 of her 36 points in the final 20 minutes.
ACES 84, ATLANTA 70
COLLEGE PARK, Ga. (AP) — A’ja Wilson scored 33 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, Jackie Young added 19 points and six assists, and Las Vegas won for the ninth time in 10 games, beating Atlanta.
Wilson has scored 30-plus points seven times this season, a career-high. She also tied Phoenix’s Brittney Griner for the most WNBA games with 25-plus points and 10-plus rebounds in a single season with 10.
Cheyenne Parker-Tyus led Atlanta with 17 points off the bench. Maya Caldwell added 13 points and Tina Charles had 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Wilson started the game making 6 of 9 shots, while the rest of her teammates were 6 of 22. Wilson had a nice sequence at the end of the second quarter when she made a driving layup, stole it at the other end, and then made two free throws with 1:52 left to extend Las Vegas’ lead to 42-30.
Wilson secured her fourth straight double-double by scoring 19 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in the first half. She also finished with five blocks to move into 12th on the WNBA’s career list.
Kelsey Plum had 15 points and seven assists for Las Vegas. Young reached 2,500 career points.
STORM 91, LYNX 63
SEATTLE (AP) — Nneka Ogwumike scored 26 points to tie her season high, Skylar Diggins-Smith tied a career high with 12 assists to go with 10 points, and the Seattle Storm beat the Minnesota Lynx 91-63 on Friday night to snap a three-game losing streak in the series.
Seattle trailed 9-2 before scoring 36 of the next 49 points for a double-digit lead in the second quarter. Minnesota was scoreless in the second quarter until Diamond Miller made a shot with 4:58 left. The Storm led 50-37 at halftime after shooting 56% from the field, including 4 of 10 from distance.
Kayla McBride scored 27 points and made six 3-pointers despite not playing in the fourth quarter for Minnesota.
Sami Whitcomb made two 3-pointers on three fourth-quarter possessions to cap a 9-0 run for an 81-57 lead. Minnesota’s first points of the fourth came on Sika Kone’s free throw with 6:46 left.
Whitcomb and Jewell Loyd each added 14 points and Ezi Magbegor had 10 points and eight rebounds for Seattle, which has lost six of its last eight games against Minnesota. Diggins-Smith secured her 12th career double-double.
The Associated Press
