INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Fever (5-15) were defeated by the New York Liberty in an overtime thriller, 95-87, at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Wednesday afternoon. A 32-12 scoring run that allowed Indiana to erase a 20-point deficit was capped off when rookie center Aliyah Boston sent the game to overtime with a game-tying three-pointer at the buzzer. Indiana was unable to come up with the win after being outscored in the extra period, 15-7

Boston was the leading scorer for Indiana for the ninth time this season as she notched 23 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the floor. The rookie center also pulled down nine rebounds in her final matchup prior to the WNBA All-Star Game weekend. Fever forward Emma Cannon followed her in the scoring column as she came off the bench to tie a career-high 19 points on a season-high seven made field goals. Cannon also totaled a season-high two completed three-pointers and gathered eight rebounds.

Rookie guard Grace Berger also came off the bench for Indiana to record career bests of 15 points, seven rebounds, three steals and 36 minutes of action. She became the first rookie to record at least 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and three steals in a game since A’ja Wilson in 2018, and only the second rookie in WNBA history to record that stat line off the bench, dating back to Angel McCoughtry in 2009, per Across the Timeline.

All-Star reserve Kelsey Mitchell and guard Erica Wheeler rounded out the Indiana scorers as Mitchell contributed 16 points and Wheeler pitched in 11 points to go along with a team-high five assists.

Indiana sped up the offensive pace opening the matchup with a quick 6-0 scoring run. New York was held scoreless through the 6:52 mark and shot 28.6 percent (2-of-7) from the floor within the first five minutes of play. Indiana was guided by Mitchell’s 12 points in the quarter on 4-of-7 shooting from the court. The Fever maintained their momentum throughout the first ten minutes and ended the quarter leading, 26-22.

It was Boston who led the scoring effort in the second frame as she contributed six of her 12 first half points on 3-of-6 shooting from the floor. In the first half, Berger recorded six points, two assists and two rebounds off the bench, while Victoria Vivians contributed three points, five rebounds and two assists. New York ventured on its own 20-8 scoring run and outscored Indiana, 26-15, within the second quarter, but the Fever remained close as the half ended, 48-41.

The Liberty extended its lead in the third quarter and opened the second half with an 11-3 scoring run. Forward Emma Cannon led the Fever as she recorded seven points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting clip within the third frame. Entering the fourth quarter, New York led Indiana, 70-53.

After trailing by as many as 20 points at one occasion in the third quarter, a 32-10 scoring run allowed Indiana to erase the New York deficit. The Fever were dominant on both ends of the court outscoring the Liberty, 27-12, and held New York to 13.3 percent (2-of-15) from the floor within the fourth frame. Following two made free throws from Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu leaving 6.5 seconds on the clock, Boston hit the game-tying three-pointer to send Indiana and New York into overtime, 80-80. In overtime, Indiana was outscored, 15-7, as Ionescu guided the Liberty to the win with eight points in the final frame alone.

New York was led by Ionescu’s 34 points on the day. Ionescu completed seven three-pointers on 14 attempts and recorded a perfect 9-of-9 from the charity stripe. All-Star captain Breanna Stewart, who averages 23.4 points per contest this season, netted only 18 points to go along with 10 rebounds to record her 10th double-double of the season. In addition, Jonquel Jones contributed 12 points, Betnijah Laney pitched in 10 points, and Courtney Vandersloot dished out 12 assists, her second highest assist total this season.

The Liberty also recorded 27 assists, which is the ninth time this season they have dished out at least 25 assists.

UP NEXT
The Fever return to action on Wednesday, July 19 at 11:30 a.m. ET at the Washington Mystics. Wednesday’s game will be broadcast on the official Indiana Fever Facebook page.