Fever Chemistry Leads to Win over Atlanta
July 11, 2025 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Indiana Fever News Release
After enduring a 19-point loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Wednesday, the Indiana Fever returned to Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday and bounced back with a 17-point win over the Atlanta Dream, 99-82.
Indiana's full rotation was healthy and playing together for just the second game following Caitlin Clark's return from a groin injury. Consistency is the goal for the Fever, but finding it amidst a shifting rotation and ever-changing matchups hasn't been an easy task for the Indiana squad.
The key to overcoming that hurdle is chemistry, and the Fever have an abundance of it.
"I really do think this is a really unique and special team," Sophie Cunningham said. "And the locker room, we really do love each other. Like we love spending time together...I have never felt like this in the W, and I've been in it for seven years."
"This is a special group that we have. And so when we can just go out there and have fun, and be competitors and feed off of each other, it's just easy."
Indiana recorded 27 assists on 35 made baskets on Friday - a 77% assist rate. Clark led the way with nine of those assists, but Aliyah Boston followed her with eight. The ball was moving, players were smiling, and Indiana was back to winning on Friday after the Fever recorded just 15 assists in Wednesday's loss.
"AB just makes really good decisions," coach Stephanie White said of Boston. "She doesn't usually get rushed. She doesn't take chances, typically. She makes the right play and the right read. And you know, I trust her in those situations where she's facilitating and where she's got the ball in her hands."
Boston had an outstanding game - she scored 19 points along with her six rebounds and eight assists in the 100th game of her career. She's the only player from her draft class to reach that milestone as she hasn't missed a game in her career.
The rapid ball movement by Indiana led to high-octane offense in the second half of play against the Dream. The Fever's 59 second-half points are their most points in any half this season, and are tied for their most points in any half in the last seven seasons. They notched a 29-point third quarter and followed it with a 30-point fourth quarter to clinch their 10th win of the season.
Indiana played with a renewed joy - a passion for more than the game. They played for each other, sacrificed for each other, and made winning plays with each other. Cunningham noted the light-heartedness on the court as a strength of the Fever, stating that once opponents see Indiana's players smiling, "It's game over."
That levity comes first from sacrifice. That's a sacrifice everyone on the roster makes - from players to coaches alike.
"There's an ego that gets you to this point," White said. "But to be able to sacrifice that ego and have enough humility to make it about the we over the me, sometimes that's a learned behavior and some people have it naturally. And we've worked really hard. They've worked really hard to be able to, no matter what the circumstance, maintain that and be intentional about that."
Women's National Basketball Association Stories from July 11, 2025
- Sky Defeat Wings, 87-76, on Allie Quigley's Jersey Retirement Night - Chicago Sky
- Connecticut Drops Road Contest to Seattle, 79-65 - Connecticut Sun
- Preview: Sky Host Lynx for Second Matchup this Week, First of Back-To-Back Against Minnesota - Chicago Sky
- Fever Chemistry Leads to Win over Atlanta - Indiana Fever
- Notes: Atlanta Dream 82, Indiana Fever 99 - Atlanta Dream
- Indiana Fever Use 59-Point Second Half to Take Down Atlanta Dream - Indiana Fever
- Aces Return Home for Clash against Valkyries Airing on CBS - Las Vegas Aces
- WNBA Live Presented by Panini: The Ultimate Fan Experience Returns to AT&T WNBA All-Star in Indianapolis - WNBA
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