Indiana (15-17) vs. New York (11-21)
Game Information
Date: Friday, September 13
Time: 7:00 p.m. (ET)
Site: Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Broadcast Information
Television - None
Radio - None
Webcast - Live webcast and stats can be accessed via WNBA Live Access on FeverBasketball.com.
Storylines & Promotions
� Indiana (15-17) hosts the New York Liberty (11-21) with hopes of securing the East�s No. 3 seed in the upcoming WNBA Playoffs. New York has been eliminated from playoff contention.
� Indiana hosts the Liberty to conclude the regular season�s final homestand. A regular season finale is at Connecticut, Sept. 15, capping a season-ending stretch with 8 of 12 games away from home.
� A Fever win over the Liberty would be its fourth win in six games while sending New York to its fifth straight defeat. A loss would be Indiana�s second in-a-row.
� Indiana will take the floor with Katie Douglas in uniform for the first time since the club�s home opener on May 31.
� Indiana is playing for the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Eastern Conference playoffs. Indiana has been eliminated from No. 2 seed consideration following its Tuesday loss to Washington. Tiebreakers:
1. If the Fever ties with the Washington Mystics (15-17), Indiana would win a head-to-head tiebreaker by virtue of its better conference record (currently 10-10 vs. 8-12). Both teams close the season against New York and Connecticut.
2. The possibility of a three-way tie for second place in the East still exists. In that scenario, Atlanta (17-15) would earn the No. 2 seed, by virtue of a better record (6-3) against the other two teams. Washington (4-5) would take the No. 3 seed and Indiana (3-5) would be seeded No. 4.
3. Atlanta wins a two-way tie between the Fever and Dream, by virtue of the Dream�s 3-1 series record.
� Shavonte Zellous (998) needs two points to reach 1,000 career points in a Fever uniform, becoming the eighth player in Indiana history to reach the milestone. Earlier this year, in the 2013 season opener, she eclipsed the 1,000-point barrier for her career, counting her rookie season in Detroit.
� Friday�s game continues an end-of-season stretch with each of the Fever�s last seven contests against teams from the East. Its last six regular season games fall during an 11-day stretch between Sept. 4 and Sept. 15.
� By virtue of last Saturday�s win over Connecticut, the Fever has reached the WNBA Playoffs in nine consecutive seasons, and 10 in 14 years. Playoffs begin Sept. 19, with the Fever likely to host Game 2 of an Eastern Conference series on Saturday, Sept. 21 or Sunday, Sept. 22. An exclusive online playoff offer is available at FeverBasketball.com until 10:00 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 16 when tickets for the Eastern Conference Semifinals go on sale to the public online, at Bankers Life Fieldhouse and at all Ticketmaster outlets.
� A Rally in the Alley for Indiana Fever Playoffs presented by Indiana Members Credit Union will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 17, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. on Bankers Life Court, on the north edge of Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Fever players, Freddy Fever and members of the Inferno Hip-Hop Squad will be in attendance. The first 200 fans will receive a Fever Playoffs T-shirt. Everyone in attendance will receive a special offer from IMCU, Fever cheer cards and the chance to win other prizes.
Probable Starters
Fever: F - Tamika Catchings, C - Erlana Larkins, G - Karima Christmas, G - Shavonte Zellous, G - Briann January
Liberty: F- Toni Young, F- Plenette Pierson, C- Kara Braxton, G- Katie Smith, G- Cappie Pondexter
Last Meeting
(July 30): Despite giving up a big early lead, the Indiana Fever kept its composure and got a big win. Tamika Catchings had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Shavonte Zellous scored 21 points and the Fever recovered after giving up a 17-point lead to beat the New York Liberty 73-67. Indiana pulled one-half game behind Washington for third place in the Eastern Conference. The Fever also increased their lead over fifth-place New York to 2 1/2 games for the conference's final playoff position. Kelsey Bone scored 11 of her 13 points in the third quarter for the Liberty, who came back from their big first-quarter deficit to take a 54-52 lead heading to the fourth. Catchings had two 3s during a 10-0 run over the first 3 minutes of the final quarter to help Indiana regain the lead for good. New York made another push, pulling within one three times - the last on Katie Smith's jumper with 2 1/2 minutes remaining. The Fever then scored the last five points for the final margin.
Last Games
Fever vs Mystics (Sept. 10): The Washington Mystics clinched a spot in the playoffs for the first time since 2010 with a 69-67 victory over the Indiana Fever. Getting the win wasn't easy. Kia Vaughn had 15 points and six rebounds to lead the Mystics. Ivory Latta had 15 points and four assists, and Tayler Hill added 12 points. Briann January had 16 points and Shavonte Zellous added 14 points and six rebounds for the Fever. Tamika Catchings, who had 13 points, made a layup with eight seconds left to get within a point, 66-65. Hill was fouled and made both free throws. Zellous scored with 1.2 seconds remaining to get within a point and Hill made one of two from the line with under a second left. Indiana turned the ball over just before time expired.
Liberty vs Mercury (Sept. 10): Candice Dupree and DeWanna Bonner each scored 18 points to help the Phoenix Mercury beat the New York Liberty 80-76. Diana Taurasi added 17 points, nine assists and six rebounds for Phoenix. With the game tied at 69 midway through the fourth quarter, Phoenix went on a 9-3 run to take control. New York wouldn't go away as Kelsey Bone hit consecutive baskets to make it 78-76 with 30 seconds left. Taurasi tried to seal the win with 9.3 seconds left, but her deep 3-pointer was off the rim giving New York one last chance. Katie Smith's inbounds pass was stolen by Briana Gilbreath and Taurasi hit two free throws to clinch it. Smith scored a season-high 17 points to lead the Liberty.
Series
Indiana boasts a 31-20 series lead over the Liberty counting four games already this season. Including a 2-2 mark this year and 3-1 in 2012, the Fever has won seven of the past 11 meetings. Indiana has won the season series with New York in every season since 2003, except for 2010 and 2011 when the clubs split 2-2 in both seasons. After losing 8 of 9 bouts from 2000-02 in the Fever�s infancy, Indiana is 30-12 since 2003. Indiana is 17-7 against the Liberty at Bankers Life Fieldhouse including wins in three of the past four meetings.