Mitchell's streak hits 10 as Sabrina Ionescu held to 12
Kelsey Mitchell scored 33 points and stretched her run to a 10th straight 20-point game as the Indiana Fever beat the New York Liberty 108-88, holding Sabrina Ionescu to 12 points in Indianapolis. The Fever erased a 13-point deficit for their second straight win and fourth victory in five games.
Key Takeaways
- Mitchell posted a season-high 33 points and became the seventh WNBA player with 10 consecutive 20-point games.
- Indiana outscored New York 30-12 in the third quarter after trailing by 13 in the second.
- Sabrina Ionescu finished with 12 points as the Liberty dropped their fourth straight game.
- Caitlin Clark added 17 points and seven assists but picked up her sixth technical foul of the season.
- Breanna Stewart led New York with 26 points; Jonquel Jones had 13.
How did Mitchell take over against the Liberty?
Mitchell knocked down four 3-pointers and finished with a season-high 33 points while shooting 71.4% from the floor, according to ESPN. She scored 14 points in the third quarter alone and briefly outscored New York by herself, 14-12, in that period.
The highlight came when Mitchell drained a pull-up 3 while being fouled by Stewart, completing a four-point play with under four minutes left. The burst gave her a fourth 30-point game this season, tying the Fever single-season mark, and extended her franchise record to 15 career 30-point outings.
She also posted back-to-back 30-point games after scoring 30 in Friday's win over Seattle, only the second such stretch in Fever franchise history.
Where did Sabrina Ionescu and New York go wrong?
Sabrina Ionescu was limited to 12 points as New York collapsed after building a 13-point second-quarter lead. The Liberty led by only four at halftime, then managed just 12 points in the third as Indiana's defense tightened.
Stewart scored 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting but missed five of nine free throws. Jones added 13. Marine Johannes scored all 12 of her points on four first-quarter 3s before exiting in the fourth with an apparent left ankle injury after stepping on Tyasha Harris' foot.
The Liberty have now lost four straight and eight of their last 10 regular-season games, excluding their Commissioner's Cup title. More sports and market-moving buzz also lands in our Fintech & Crypto Alerts coverage hub.
What did Clark's night mean for Indiana?
Clark played her first back-to-back in more than two years and finished with 17 points and seven assists in 26 minutes. She shot 5-of-14 from the field and 2-of-8 from deep, with seven turnovers, a day after her franchise-record 45 points and 10 assists against Seattle.
Aliyah Boston returned from a one-game absence with a lower right leg injury and contributed 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Sophie Cunningham added 11 points off the bench, including three 3-pointers.
Clark also drew her sixth technical foul of the season after reacting to a no-call on a screen from Jones. Eight technicals trigger a one-game WNBA suspension, so the All-Star is two away from an automatic sit-out if the call stands.