ROSEMONT, Ill. — Candice Dupree scored 17 points to pace five double-figure scorers and lead the Indiana Fever to an 82-75 afternoon win over the Chicago Sky at Allstate Arena. Before an announced Kids Day crowd of 10,197 mostly screaming youngsters, Indiana took a third-quarter lead and never let go.
Indiana won for the third time in four games and beat the Sky at Allstate Arena for the second time in 10 days. The Fever, 2-5 on the road, kept Chicago winless on its court through seven opportunities. It was Indiana’s fourth straight win over the Sky dating to last season, and the Sky’s fourth loss in its past five games.
Indiana took a 39-36 lead on Erica Wheeler’s 3-pointer with 7:36 remaining in the third, and never trailed again. The Fever withstood a pair of ties late in the period and carried a 55-51 advantage into the final quarter. Marissa Coleman hit her third 3-pointer of the game and Wheeler added her second to help the Fever keep a six-point lead, 63-57, with 5:59 to play.
Indiana held pushed its lead to eight points in the final quarter on three occasions, and a driving layup by Tiffany Mitchell thrust Indiana back to a double-digit margin at 75-65 at the 2:01 mark.
Mitchell missed the ensuing free throw to snap a franchise-record free throw streak. The WNBA leader in free throw percentage, Mitchell had extended her consecutive streak of free throws made to 43 to close the third quarter, passing her own club record of 42 set last season as a rookie. She finished 6-of-8 at the foul stripe with 10 points.
Wheeler’s two 3-pointers contributed to 13 points, and Erlana Larkins made 5-of-7 shots for 12 points. Coleman sparked Indiana’s long-distance shooting with three 3-pointers as she became the 11th player in franchise history to score more than 1,000 career points in a Fever jersey (1,008). She finished with nine points and Briann January chipped in 10.
“When you value the basketball, you will have good opportunities for success,” said Fever coach Pokey Chatman, whose team committed just eight turnovers, 10 days after setting a franchise record here with just four miscues on June 18. “Despite a lack of flow today, we found a way to hit a few shots and really grind it out. Sometimes, when things don’t all go right, those are the best wins. I liked that we had 20 assists on 28 made baskets, we got to the free throw line, got some stops in big moments and we hit a couple 3s.”
Indiana’s ball control and 7-of-15 3-point shooting helped offset a record rebound margin by the Sky (48-25), matching the largest rebound deficit in Indiana history. The Fever moved to 6-2 this season when committing fewer than 12 turnovers. Indiana also climbed to 4-1 against teams from the Eastern Conference.
Scoring from five different players helped Indiana create separation with a 13-4 spurt sandwiching the first and second quarters, but Chicago erased a 13-point margin with an 16-2 second-period run that pushed the Sky back into the lead, 32-31, on a putback by Cheyenne Parker. Dupree and the Sky’s Allie Quigley traded buckets in the final moments before intermission as Chicago took a 34-33 lead into halftime.
Jessica Breland paced Chicago with 22 points on 11-of-16 shooting, and nine rebounds. Cappie Pondexter finished with 13 points and Imani Boyette added 12 points and 10 boards.
Indiana returns to Bankers Life Fieldhouse for a Saturday afternoon bout with the Connecticut Sun at 4:00 p.m.
Highlights