Indiana Fever (3-21) at Las Vegas Aces (11-13)

Date: Sunday, July 22, 2018
Time: 6:00 p.m. (EDT)
Site: Mandalay Bay Events Center
TV: none
Live Stream: WNBA League Pass

Probable Starters
Fever: F – Victoria Vivians, F – Candice Dupree, C – Natalie Achonwa, G – Cappie Pondexter, G – Erica Wheeler
Aces: F – Tamera Young, F – A’ja Wilson, C – Carolyn Swords, G – Kayla McBride, G – Kelsey Plum

The Indiana Fever conclude a three-game West Coast road trip at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Sunday afternoon, visiting the Las Vegas Aces for the first of two trips to the Nevada desert.

The Fever hope to come away with a second straight victory, following Friday night’s upset win over the Sparks in Los Angeles. Veterans Candice Dupree and Cappie Pondexter each scored 16 points and Natalie Achonwa added 15 as Indiana held on late for its third win of the season.

Las Vegas enters the game fresh from an 85-82 road upset of their own, besting Phoenix in a Thursday night win. Kayla McBride had 27 points in the Aces victory.

Injury Report
Guard Shenise Johnson (left knee ACL rehabilitation) remains out and will not play.

Storylines
• The Fever square off with the Las Vegas Aces for just the second time since the team relocated from San Antonio during the offseason. It is the Fever’s first visit to Las Vegas, marking the 32nd different arena in which the Fever have ever played, and the 26th different city.

• Indiana hopes to avenge an overtime loss at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in June. Star rookie A’ja Wilson posted 35 points and 13 rebounds in the win for the Aces, while Fever center Natalie Achonwa posted career highs of 26 points and 15 rebounds. The Aces led 84-76 with 2:18 to play before Indiana scored the last eight points of regulation to knot the score on a fadeaway jumper from Candice Dupree with 37 seconds to go. Las Vegas, though, outscored the home team 17-8 in the extra session with Wilson shooting 5-of-5 and finishing with 10 points and four rebounds in overtime.

• The Indiana roster boasts a pair of former San Antonio stars, injured guard Shenise Johnson and center Kayla Alexander, acquired in a trade with the Aces on Feb. 1. While no Aces players have spent time with the Fever, Las Vegas guards Kayla McBride and Lindsay Allen both starred in college just north of Indianapolis, at Notre Dame.

• Indiana was swept by San Antonio last season as the Stars took the three meetings over the Fever last season by an average of 11.7 points per game.

• Riding the experience and 16-point efforts of 13-year veterans Candice Dupree and Cappie Pondexter, the Fever earned a 78-76 upset at L.A. on Friday. Indiana blitzed the Sparks on the way to a 63-48 lead in the third, and led by 12 headed to the fourth. The Fever withstood a furious Sparks rally that ended with Candace Parker’s two-foot putback that rolled off the rim as time expired.

• Last Sunday against Phoenix, Candice Dupree (now 5,899 points; 2,408 field goals) moved past Becky Hammon (5,841) into ninth place on the WNBA’s career scoring chart. She also passed Tamika Catchings (2,385) into fourth on the career chart for field goals made.

• Cappie Pondexter is fourth on the league’s scoring chart (6,722), just behind Catchings (7,380); and third on the list for field goals (2,411). Similarly, Pondexter (1,444 free throws) passed Katie Smith (1,440) in fifth place on the WNBA career list, in Wednesday’s loss at Minnesota.

• Indiana’s Kelsey Mitchell (54)-Victoria Vivians (43) rookie tandem sports 97 3-pointers through 24 games, already second in league history by a pair of rookies on the same team.

• Natalie Achonwa, 10th in club history with 433 rebounds, can move into ninth with three rebounds, and eighth with 20 more caroms.

• Erica Wheeler is 29 points from becoming just the seventh undrafted free agent in WNBA history to reach 1,000 career points and 300 career assists. She would join Washington’s Tierra Ruffin-Pratt as only the second player to do so since 2003.