Caitlin Clark gets another triple-double, Indiana Fever beat Sparks for fifth straight win

INDIANAPOLIS — On the same day she was named WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month, Caitlin Clark notched the second triple-double of her career as the Indiana Fever overcame a sloppy start to beat the Los Angeles Sparks, 93-86, for their 18th win of the season.

Indiana has won five straight games and seven of eight since the return from the Olympic break and are now 18-16, sixth in the WNBA standings with a playoff spot already locked up.

Insider: Caitlin Clark keeps setting records, but she just wants to win. And the Fever are.

More: How Caitlin Clark, Christie Sides reacted to making playoffs

Here are three observations:

Lack of rhythm, turnovers mar first half

Something just wasn’t adding up for the Fever in the first half. Indiana, fresh off clinching its first playoff berth since 2016, was playing against the last-place Sparks.

But even with the advantage on paper, the Fever couldn’t seem to get an advantage against the Sparks. It wasn’t unusual; Indiana has struggled against lower-level teams this season, even taking losses to the Washington Mystics and Dallas Wings when they were in last place.

The Fever couldn’t find a rhythm in the first half, and it showed especially in the first quarter. Indiana had two backcourt violations — something that is very unusual for the Fever — and turned the ball over eight times. They couldn’t get out on a run or create space.

Luckily for Indiana, Los Angeles couldn’t take advantage of the Fever’s miscues. Indiana still led, albeit by one, following the first quarter. Los Angeles then flipped the script and took a one-point lead into halftime.

But that only fueled Indiana. They found their rhythm in the second half, creating up to an eight-point lead in the fourth quarter to beat the league’s last-place team.

Caitlin Clark behind-the-back passes fuel highlight plays

Once the Fever found their rhythm in the second half, Clark punctuated her passes with some flashy motion. On Wednesday night, it was behind-the-back passes.

Her first wasn’t credited to her as an assist; but it was still a highlight that could make SportsCenter’s top plays. Clark flung the ball behind her back, through two defenders, to Aliyah Boston, who kicked it out to a wide-open Erica Wheeler for 3.

And the crowd went wild when the ball flew through the net.

Minutes later, she flashed behind-the-back again. After draining a 3-pointer, then grabbing a loose ball defensively, Clark drove to the basket as if she was going for a layup. Instead she flung it around and behind her back to Boston again, who evaded Sparks forward Rae Burrell for a layup.

Behind-the-back passes are in Clark’s repertoire, but she doesn’t usually use it as frequently as she did Wednesday night. It was something the Sparks weren’t expecting; exactly the reason to catch them off-guard.

Kelsey Mitchell‘s streak of 20+ point games ends

Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell’s franchise-record streak of scoring 20 or more points will end at seven. Mitchell had scored 20 or more points in each of the Fever’s games since the Olympic break, including a straggering 36 against Dallas on Sunday afternoon.

On Wednesday, she came up just short.

She went into the final two minutes of the fourth quarter with 18 points, but at that point, her shot wasn’t falling. She had a chance to eclipse the 20-point threshold with 58 seconds left, but the ball bounced off the rim. Then, as Lexie Hull grabbed the offensive rebound and tried to get the ball back out to Mitchell, she was fouled.

Hull hit both free throws, and Mitchell’s chance to get two more points dwindled as the Sparks started fouling on every Fever possession. Indiana couldn’t get it to Mitchell before they were fouled, and the seven-year veteran ended with 18 points.

How many points did Caitlin Clark score?

Clark got a triple-double at the last second, grabbing a rebound on the Fever’s last defensive possession to finish with 24 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.

It’s the second triple-double of her career, and she is the only rookie to have a triple-double in WNBA history.

She also shot 4-of-10 from 3-point range, becoming the first rookie in league history to make 100 or more 3-pointers.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Caitlin Clark gets triple-double, Indiana Fever win fifth straight