Indiana Fever vs. Phoenix Mercury
WNBA Playoffs First Round

Date: Wednesday, September 21, 2016
Time: 6:00 p.m. (EDT)
Site: Bankers Life Fieldhouse (Indianapolis, IN)
Television: ESPNews/ESPN3.com
Webcast: Live webcast and stats can be accessed via WNBA League Pass on FeverBasketball.com

(Webcasts during games televised on ESPNews 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
Phoenix – F- Penny Taylor, F- DeWanna Bonner, C- Brittney Griner, G- Candice Dupree, G- Diana Taurasi

Storylines & Promotion

• The WNBA Playoffs presented by Verizon tip off Wednesday night at 6:00 p.m. as the fifth-seeded Indiana Fever host the Phoenix Mercury in a win-or-go-home matchup at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

• With the WNBA’s new playoff format, the teams with the league’s top eight records qualified for the postseason. Minnesota and Los Angeles, the top two overall seeds earned a bye into a best-of-five WNBA Semifinals series (Sept. 28-Oct. 6). Teams seeded 5th through 8th participate in first-round elimination games on Wednesday, Sept. 21.

• If Indiana gets past Phoenix, the Fever will travel to Chicago to face the fourth-seeded Sky Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. 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).

• Wednesday night the Fever will host Lucas Oil Family Night presented by IndyStar. Family tickets will be available in the Krieg DeVault Club Level.

• The Fever are making their 12th consecutive appearance in the WNBA Playoffs, extending their own WNBA record. Indiana has won at least one playoff game in nine consecutive seasons and have reached at least the conference finals in each of the last five seasons, also league records.

• The Fever have won nine of its past 12 playoff elimination games, including a 5-1 record in the 2015 postseason. Overall, Indiana is 16-10 all-time in elimination contests, including an 11-2 record at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. In Indiana’s 12 elimination games since 2012, Catchings averages 19.4 (233) points and 8.2 (98) rebounds per game. She has eclipsed 20 points in seven of those 12 games and in six of Indiana’s nine wins.

• Indiana returns eight players from last year’s team that went the distance in the 2015 WNBA Finals before falling to the Minnesota Lynx in five games.

• Tamika Catchings leads the Fever into the playoffs for the 13th time in her 15-year playing career. She is the WNBA’s career leader in postseason points, rebounds, free throws, steals and games played.

• Catchings finished the 2016 regular season as the league’s leader in steals, collecting 62 thefts on the season. The Fever led the WNBA this season in steals with 8.8 per game and finished second while forcing 15.6 turnovers per game.

• Indiana also led the WNBA this season in team free throw percentage as they set a franchise record for the highest team free throw percentage at 84.5 percent from the line this season. Shenise Johnson led the WNBA this season and tied Stephanie White’s 2003 record for the highest free throw percentage in a season as she shot 93.8 percent from the charity stripe.

• The Phoenix Mercury finished the regular season 16-18, falling into the eighth seed after losing the tiebreaker with the Seattle Storm. After beginning the regular season 8-13, the Mercury won eight of their final 13 games, including wins in three of their last four outings.

• The matchup pits the Fever and Mercury in the playoffs for the first time since the two teams met in the 2009 WNBA Finals. The Mercury outlasted the Fever in five games, including wins in Games 4 and 5 of the series to come back and win their second WNBA championship.

• Phoenix has won three WNBA championships, and are led by Olympian and former league MVP Diani Taurasi with 17.8 points and 3.9 assists per game this season. Olympic teammate Brittney Griner added 14.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game during the regular season.

• The Fever won four consecutive regular season matchups over the Mercury before Phoenix stole a 79-65 road win at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in the last meeting on August 30.

Series
The Fever won two of the three regular season matchups over the Mercury this season, but Phoenix stole a 14-point road victory in the last matchup on August 30. The Fever lead the regular season series 20-12 with an 11-6 record at home all time.

Practice Report —