Indiana Fever (16-16) vs. Minnesota Lynx (26-6)

Date: Friday, September 16, 2016
Time: 7:00 p.m. (EDT)
Site: Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Indianapolis, IN)
Television: NBATV/MyIndy-TV 23
Webcast: Live webcast and stats can be accessed via WNBA League Pass on FeverBasketball.com. Webcasts during games televised on FOX Sports Indiana may not be available in local market areas due to blackout restrictions.

Probable Starters
Fever– F- Tamika Catchings, F-Marissa Coleman, C-Erlana Larkins, G- Erica Wheeler, G-Briann January
Minnesota– F- Maya Moore, F- Rebekkah Brunson, C- Sylvia Fowles, G- Seimone Augustus, G- Renee Montgomery

Storylines & Promotion
• Winding down the 2016 regular season, the Indiana Fever return home to play their final two regular season games, starting Friday night against the defending-champion Minnesota Lynx at 7:00 p.m.

• Friday night the Fever will host the annual Fan Appreciation Night presented by Sport Graphics. Fever fans can save on tickets in the Krieg DeVault Club Level with promo code: Fever20. Tickets purchased with this code will automatically enter fans for a chance to win great prizes including $20,000 or a trip to the 2017 WNBA All-Star game. Learn more and view rules at WNBASuper20.com. Find tickets at FeverBasketball.com.

• The Fever have already secured a spot in the playoffs with their victory at Washington Sunday afternoon. Indiana extended its own WNBA record for the most consecutive playoff appearances as the Fever will appear in the postseason for the 12th consecutive season. However, Indiana’s path to a fourth trip to the WNBA Finals will heavily weigh on the outcome of the next two games.

• Under the WNBA’s new playoff format, the top eight seeds regardless of conference will qualify for the postseason. The league’s top two overall seeds will earn a bye into the best-of-five WNBA Semifinals (Sept. 28-Oct. 6). Teams seeded 5th through 8th participate in first-round elimination games on Wednesday, Sept. 21. Winners battle the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds in second-round elimination games. Winners of second-round games reach the WNBA Semifinals in a best-of-five series (Sept. 28-Oct. 6). Semifinal winners advance to the WNBA Finals (Oct. 9-20).

• With Indiana’s loss at Connecticut combined with Chicago’s win over Minnesota, the Fever currently sit in a fifth-place tie with Atlanta with a 16-16 overall record. Chicago is currently one game ahead in fourth place with a 17-15 record, but will now be playing without reigning WNBA MVP, Elena Delle Donne, who recently underwent surgery on her thumb.

• Indiana owns tiebreakers over both the Sky and the Dream. In the event of a fourth-place tie, the Fever will earn the fourth seed.

• Indiana still could finish as low as the number seven seed as Seattle sits only one game behind with a 15-17 record. Just one Fever win or one Seattle loss would ensure Indiana at least a five or six seed, which includes a first-round home game.

• Tamika Catchings has a chance to make history at home Friday night as she needs three total rebounds to pass Lisa Leslie (3,307) as the WNBA’s all-time leading rebounder.

• Shenise Johnson continued her late-season offensive clinic Tuesday night with the best scoring output of her career. She finished with a game-high 23 points on 9-for-13 shooting and 3-for-3 from the free throw line. Currently second in the WNBA this season shooting 93.1 percent from the foul line, Johnson has made her last 35 free throw attempts, which passed Catchings’ record of 33 straight set during the 2010 season. Johnson has not missed a free throw since July 15.

• Point guard Briann January has scored in double figures in each of the last four games, including a season-high with 20 in Indiana’s last home game against Chicago last Friday. January needs eight points (1,992) to become the third player in franchise history to score 2,000 points in a Fever uniform.

• Minnesota currently holds the WNBA’s best record with a 26-6 mark this season. Despite falling for the first time since the Olympic break Tuesday night at Chicago, the Lynx have locked up the top overall seed in the WNBA playoffs. The Lynx are on a quest to win their fourth WNBA title in the last six years and to become the first repeat champions since the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001-02.

• The Lynx have won the two previous regular season matchups with the Fever this season. Minnesota will make its first road trip to Indiana this season Friday night and for the first time since Indiana earned a 75-69 win over the Lynx in Game 4 of the 2015 WNBA Finals.

• Minnesota’s roster features four players who won Olympic gold medals alongside Tamika Catchings in August – Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles, Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen. Moore, the 2014 WNBA MVP, leads the Lynx once again with 19.4 points to go with 5.3 rebounds and team-high 4.2 assists per game. Fowles, who earned WNBA Finals MVP honors in the series against Indiana last season, is averaging 13.5 points and 8.7 rebounds – fourth in the league this season.

Last Meeting
(June 14, 2016) MINNEAPOLIS – The Lynx made a statement in front of a nationally televised audience as Minnesota’s defense stymied Indiana’s attack, forcing the Fever to shoot just 34 percent from the field for 63 points on their way to a 24-point home victory and an 11-0 record to start the season. After Minnesota scored the game’s first four points, Indiana tied the game at 7-7 midway through the opening quarter; but the Lynx would rattle off 10 straight points and never looked back from there. The Lynx built their lead to as many as 20 points before halftime and 28 points late in the third quarter while using a balanced scoring attack that placed five players in double figures on the night. Maya Moore led all scorers with 16 points while Seimone Augustus added 12. Erlana Larkins led the Fever with 12 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Tiffany Mitchell and Lynetta Kizer added 11 and 10 points respectively off the bench for Indiana.

Series
Minnesota has won the first two regular season games over Indiana this season and the last 11 regular season matchups overall in the series. Minnesota will make its first trip to Indiana since falling in Game 4 of the 2015 WNBA Finals at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Indiana has not defeated the Lynx in the regular season since earning a road victory at Minnesota on June 26, 2011. The Fever have lost the last eight regular season home games to the Lynx. Minnesota has not lost at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in the regular season since May 19, 2007.

Minnesota leads the all-time series with a 20-12 record, including a 9-6 mark at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.