Indiana Fever (18-14) at Atlanta Dream (14-18)
Date: Friday, September 11, 2015
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Site: Philips Arena (Atlanta, GA)
Radio: None
Television: WNDY-TV
Webcast: Live webcast and stats can be accessed via WNBA Live Access on FeverBasketball.com. (Webcasts during games televised on FOX Sports Indiana may not be available in local market areas due to blackout restrictions.)
Playoff Update
Indiana is guaranteed the No. 3 or No. 4 seed in the upcoming Eastern Conference playoffs. Any combination of two Indiana wins or Washington losses will net the Fever the third seed. Indiana will begin the playoffs at either No. 1-seed New York or No. 2-seed Chicago. The Fever will host Game 2 of the best-of-three East Semifinals on Saturday, Sept. 19 or Sunday, Sept. 20.
Storylines & Promotion
- After a 72-76 overtime loss at Washington Tuesday night, the Fever have now lost five of their last six games. Indiana looks to right the ship heading into the playoffs as they play the final road game of the regular season at Atlanta Friday night at 7:30 p.m.
- With two games to play, Indiana (18-14) currently holds a one-game lead over Washington (17-15) for third place in the Eastern Conference standings. The Mystics hold the tiebreaker after taking the regular season series over the Fever, 3-2.
- At 8-8 on the road this season, the Fever have a chance to tie the franchise record for most road victories in a season. A win on Friday would mark the sixth time in team history the team has won nine road games and the third time in the last four seasons.
- Tamika Catchings has scored in double figures in nine consecutive games and 24 of her 29 appearances this season.
- Layshia Clarendon finished with a team-high 15 points in Tuesday’s loss at Washington and is averaging 11.0 points per game over the last five contests.
- Stephanie White has won more games this season than any first-year head coach in Fever franchise history. Lin Dunn went 17-17 in her first season as head coach in the 2008 season.
- To boost White’s resume for WNBA Coach of the Year, the Fever have featured nine different starting lineups this season, have entered only two games this season with all 12 players in uniform (July 28 at Connecticut and August 28 vs. Atlanta) and have never ended a game with all 12 players healthy.
- With victories in the final two regular season games, White would become the third rookie head coach in WNBA history to record at least 20 wins in his or her first year. Michael Cooper set the record with 28 wins during his first year as head coach of the Los Angeles Sparks in 2000.
Probable Starters
Fever – F-Tamika Catchings, F-Marissa Coleman, C-Lynetta Kizer, G-Shenise Johnson, G-Layshia Clarendon
Dream – F- Sancho Lyttle, F- Damiris Dantas, C- Aneika Henry, G- Tiffany Hayes, G- Shoni Schimmel
Last Meeting
(August 28, 2015) The Fever raced out to an early lead and built their advantage to as many as 12 points before halftime; but thanks in part to a 31-for-36 performance from the foul line, the Atlanta Dream slowly chipped away at the deficit and took control midway through the fourth quarter on their way to a 90-84 victory at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Dream forced 19 Indiana turnovers on the night that turned into 24 points on the other end. The loss marked the first time Indiana lost consecutive games in over a month and the first loss at home while leading after three quarters. Tamika Catchings led Indiana with 24 points and seven rebounds while Layshia Clarendon set a new career high with 17 points. Tiffany Hayes finished with a career-high 28 points for Atlanta.
Last Games
Fever: (September 8, 2015) Ivory Latta scored a season-high 25 points to spark the Washington Mystics to a 76-72 overtime win over the Indiana Fever and a berth in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Latta’s three-point play capped a fourth-quarter comeback that sent the contest to overtime, and her free throw with 24.6 seconds to play gave Washington a 75-72 advantage and forced Indiana to shoot from beyond the arc in its final possession. Tamika Catchings’ attempt to tie fell off the mark as the Fever fell for the fifth time in six outings. Layshia Clarendon led the Fever with 15 points while Lynetta Kized chipped in 12. Latta finished with a game-high 25 points for Washington, including 15 after halftime.
Dream: (September 9, 2015) Led by Angel McCoughtry with 23 points off the bench, five Atlanta players scored at least 14 points as the Dream rolled to a 90-60 victory over the short-handed Los Angeles Sparks in Atlanta on Wednesday. The Sparks, who only played eight players in the game, tied the game at 2-2 just over a minute into the game; but it was all Atlanta from that point on as the Dream led by 15 at the end of the first quarter and led by as many as 31 points in the second half. The Dream held Los Angeles to 37 percent shooting on the night while nearly doubling the Sparks on the boards, 54-28 in the rebounding column. Shoni Schimmel, Tiffany Hayes and Damiris Dantas all finished with 15 points while Sancho Lyttle added 14 points.
Series
Indiana has won two of the three matchups with Atlanta this season, including a 29-point victory on Aug. 7 in which the Fever piled up a WNBA season-high 106 points at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Dating back to last season, the Fever have won four consecutive road games over the Dream. In the last eight regular season meetings between Atlanta and Indiana, the road team has won seven of the eight matchups with each squad splitting a 4-4 record. Atlanta leads the overall series, 17-16, including a 9-6 record at home.