Cannon's Scoring off the Bench Not Enough for Fever Against Washington
August 18, 2023 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Indiana Fever News Release
INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana Fever (8-24) dropped an 83-79 affair to the Washington Mystics on Friday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Fever forward Emma Cannon was Indiana's leading scorer for the second time this season as she netted 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting off the bench. Cannon recorded 10 of her 17 points in the final quarter and pulled down six rebounds on the night.
WNBA All-Star Aliyah Boston contributed a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. With her six field goals this evening, Boston took sole possession of first all-time in franchise history in field goals made by a rookie. Boston ended the night with 190 field goals through the first 32 games of her career, surpassing Tamika Catchings' 184 field goals in 2002.
With her second assist of the night in the second quarter, Fever guard Erica Wheeler became the 35th player in WNBA history to record 1,000 career assists. Wheeler joins Becky Hammon as only the second undrafted player to achieve the feat, per Across the Timeline. Wheeler also added 12 points against Washington to go along with six rebounds.
Kelsey Mitchell contributed 15 points and a team-high seven assists, while Kristy Wallace added eight points after earning her third consecutive start. In addition, rookie guard Grace Berger recorded her 100th point this season on Friday night.
Indiana's 66.7 percent (6-of-9) shooting from the floor within the first three minutes allowed the Fever to open the matchup with a 10-3 scoring run. Though Washington shot 33.3 percent (2-of-6) from the court in the beginning of the first quarter, it responded with a 12-4 scoring run of its own, earning the Mystics their first and only lead of the quarter at the 2:20 mark. With the help of Boston, who recorded eight points on 4-of-5 shooting and pulled down five rebounds, the Fever quickly took back the advantage as the quarter ended with Indiana leading, 18-16.
Cannon's seven points and Boston's six points guided the Fever through the second quarter that featured seven of the half's nine lead changes. Though Indiana shot 0-of-9 from beyond the arc in the first half and Washington went 8-of-14, the Fever outscored the Mystics in the paint, 30-8. The teams went into the locker room tied, 42-42, at halftime.
The Fever improved its shooting behind the arc in the third quarter as they completed four 3-pointers on six attempts while also holding the Mystics to 30 percent (3-of-10) from the floor in the first six minutes of the half. Mitchell contributed seven points in the third quarter scoring effort, while Wallace added six points on a perfect 2-of-2 shooting clip from the three-point line. Washington responded to an Indiana 11-3 scoring run with a 12-0 scoring run of its own as it led, 62-59, going into the final quarter.
Once taking the lead at the 3:55 mark in the fourth quarter, the Mystics would not trail again as the Mystics expanded their lead to seven points on one occasion. The Fever made a short comeback effort after halting a Mystics 15-6 scoring run with two 3-pointers from Cannon and reduced the deficit to two points with 9.3 seconds remaining to play. Two free throws in the final seconds from Natasha Cloud solidified the win for Washington.
Washington was led by Brittney Sykes, who tied a season-high 30 points on 11-of-19 shooting from the court and 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc. Sykes also pulled down five rebounds and dished out four assists. Cloud followed behind with 16 points and five rebounds, while Shatori Walker-Kimbrough added eight points.
Indiana outrebounded the Mystics, 36-27, while allowing Washington only three rebounds on the offensive glass.
UP NEXT
The Fever will travel to take on the Phoenix Mercury at 6 p.m. ET on Sunday, which will be broadcast on the official Fever Facebook page.
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