Angel Reese, Sky storm back to snap Fever’s 4-game win streak in another thriller

CHICAGO — After two straight victories over the Sky this season, Indiana dropped its first contest to Chicago on the road at Wintrust Arena in a last-second, chippy 88-87 loss.

The loss drops the Fever to 7-11 on the season and broke their four-game win streak.

Angel Reese scored a game-high 25 points with 16 rebounds to lead a big comeback for the Sky, while Caitlin Clark had 17 points and a career-high 13 assists in the third WNBA matchup of these high-profile rookies.

Here are some observations:

Sky’s late push gives them first victory of season over Indiana

Aided by a 17-2 run, Indiana led by 12 points, 82-70, with just over six minutes left in the game. It seems like a cut-and-dry victory, one that the Fever could coast to the end.

But the Sky weren’t going down that easily. Led by seven points from Angel Reese, the Sky went on a 12-0 run, capped with a Reese and-1 at the 2-minute mark after NaLyssa Smith’s fifth foul. Both Reese and Smith picked up offsetting technical fouls after that play.

That and-1, though, tied the score. And it gave the Sky crowd, which was a mix of Fever and Sky fans, a renewed sense of energy. It was a chippy game in a partly-hostile, partly-supportive Wintrust Arena. There were droves of people wearing Caitlin Clark jerseys, whether they were in Fever or Hawkeye colors. Clark and the Fever garnered large cheers on intros, made shots and drawn fouls, but the Sky drew a roar.

As the game went into clutch time, the Fever’s shots weren’t falling. They missed three straight shots and picked up a shot-clock violation in next 60 seconds. Eventually, they started to foul, giving the Sky four free shots.

Then, Aliyah Boston made just her fifth 3-pointer of the season, putting the Fever within one point, 88-87. Sky guard Marina Mabrey then missed both of her free throws with just under 15 seconds left, giving the Fever one final chance.

The midrange jumper from Boston bounced off the rim, the clock ran out, and “Sky win” flashed on the jumbotron. But a last-second foul gave the Sky two free throws with 0.5 seconds left, and Kamilla Cardoso missed both. Then, Christie Sides called a reset timeout with 0.2 seconds left, and the Fever’s true final chance was there with 0.2 seconds left.

But what can you do with 0.2 seconds on the clock? The pass from Clark off the sideline went in and out of Smith’s hands, and the Sky officially won, 88-87.

Caitlin Clark breaks single-game assist record

Fever rookie Caitlin Clark started the game hot. Guarded by the Sky’s Marina Mabrey to start the game, Clark knocked down two early 3-pointers in the first five minutes. Then, the Sky put Diamond DeShields on the Fever rookie. DeShields made Clark just uncomfortable enough that her shots weren’t falling. Even when DeShields eventually subbed out, Clark couldn’t get a shot to go in the net for the rest of the half.

With her shot not falling, she found another way to contribute. She racked up six assists in the second quarter alone, along with quelling her turnover problem. She had seven assists by halftime with just two turnovers. She was on track to break the Fever’s single-game assists record — Erica Wheeler set it with 12 assists against Chicago last season.

By the end of the third quarter, she had the record. It came on an post-entry pass to the low post, as Clark’s pass soared above the Sky’s double-team and into Aliyah Boston’s waiting hands. Boston easily dropped the ball into the basket, and Clark had the record.

She found her shot again, too, in the second half, dropping in nine more points.

She finished the game with 13 assists, five short of Courtney Vandersloot’s single-game WNBA record of 18 — set against the Fever in 2020.

How many points did Caitlin Clark score against the Chicago Sky?

Clark finished with 17 points, 13 assists and five rebounds on Sunday afternoon.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Angel Reese, Chicago Sky get better of Caitlin Clark, Fever in Round 3