Game 12: The Fever DID WHAT? The Sparks might be the the Storm's biggest threat, and everything else you need to know.
The Fever took down the title frontrunners. Mhmm. Just like we thought they would.
Hello, it’s me, Matt.
We’re 12 sets of games through a 22-game season, and the Seattle Storm just went down in upset fashion. Bubble basketball is all over the place, and I’m here for the chaos.
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Ok, I’ll shut up now.
Here’s basketball.
THE FEVER DID WHAT NOW?
Indiana was having a lackluster season, sitting at just 4-7, before upsetting the Seattle Storm, 90-84, on Thursday night. What a damn win for the Fever, who held Breanna Stewart, the probable MVP, to just 18 points on 18 shots.
The Fever had control of this game for all 40 minutes, and it was incredible to watch considering they had just EIGHT players available. Stephanie Mavunga, Tiffany Mitchell and Victoria Vivians were all out due to injury.
In the win, Kennedy Burke had 23 points on 13 shots, Kelsey Mitchell scored 17 points on 12 shots, and Natalie Achonwa scored 14 points on 12 shots. Teaira McCowan double-doubled with 10 points and 10 boards. The Fever have pieces. It’s going to be exciting when they put them all together and everyone’s healthy.
This game showed Seattle is beatable. Sure they were missing Sue Bird, but the rest of the Storm were bothered by Indiana’s length. The Storm are still the favorite to win it all, but only sit 1.5 games above the Las Vegas Aces for first place.
The Sparks are damn good
Los Angeles is just a half-game behind Las Vegas for the No. 2 seed, and another impressive 83-74 win over the Mercury has me thinking they could be the Storm’s biggest threat. In the win, Chelsea Gray, Candace Parker and Brittney Sykes each scored 16 points, and Nneka Ogwumike chipped in 10 points with six rebounds. A well-rounded offense is how the Sparks operate.
L.A. might be the deepest non-Seattle team in the league, with multiple bench players able to walk in and score at high clips. Sykes usually comes off the bench, along with Sixth Woman of the Year candidate Riquna Williams and Seimone Augustus. The Sparks have a surplus of shooters and versatile defenders.
This L.A. team looks a heckuva lot better than the one that ended in an ugly postseason sweep a year ago. Most importantly, Candace Parker is on another level.
The Mystics snapped their losing streak thanks to … Stella Johnson!?
The seven consecutive game losing streak is finally over for the Mystics after they beat the Dream, 98-91. Myisha Hines-Allen scored 23 points, Emma Meesseman scored 12 points with 10 assists, and Ariel Atkins scored 13 points. But it was rookie Stella Johnson, in her third game with the team, who led the way with 25 points including 6-of-9 makes from range.
It’s early to call Johnson a mid-season gem, but Wednesday’s game was an extremely good sign of what’s to come. Washington’s going to need her now that Aerial Powers is likely out for the season.
Go off Jewell Loyd
Loyd was the outlier for Seattle in the loss, scoring 35 points on 19 shots. She was tremendous scoring from range (3-of-6), and slashing to the hoop.
She’s bounced back from a forgettable 2019 season, now averaging 15 points on a career-high 46 percent shooting from the field, and 43 percent shooting from range.
Candace Parker and Diana Taurasi’s mid-game cursing was INCREDIBLE
YES. The Taurasi-Parker rivalry rules. I love when these two match up.
And now for the bad news.
Diamond DeShields went down with a quad injury
DeShields has been battling a knee injury all season, and hasn’t looked right since the season’s tip-off. On Thursday night, she landed awkwardly after going up for a shot, and looked to be in an extreme amount of discomfort. According to Mechelle Voepel of ESPN, Sky head coach James Wade said she was being evaluated at the hospital, but he had no further update.
I hope she’s ok.
Sue Bird missed Thursday night’s game with a left knee injury
Yep, this is the knee that’s cost her five games already. According to Voepel, Storm head coach Gary Kloppenburg said there was a “flare-up” in her knee, and that he doesn’t think the injury is serious.
Let’s hope.
Additional notes:
Chennedy Carter, Sabrina Ionescu, Moriah Jefferson, Sylvia Fowles, Kiara Leslie, Stephanie Mavunga, Cheyenne Parker, Aerial Powers, Satou Sabally, and Victoria Vivians all sat due to their previously noted injuries
Rachel Banham (hamstring) and Odyssey Sims (groin) missed Game 11, Sue Bird missed Game 13 with a knee injury, and Tiffany Mitchell missed Game 12 with a wrist injury
Matt’s power rankings:
Storm
Aces
Sparks
Lynx
Sky
Mercury
Sun
Fever
Wings
Mystics
Dream
Liberty
Matt’s MVP rankings:
Breanna Stewart
A’ja Wilson
Candace Parker
Angel McCoughtry
Courtney Vandersloot
Matt’s Rookie of the Year rankings:
Crystal Dangerfield
Chennedy Carter
Satou Sabally
Julie Allemand
Ezi Magbegor
Ok, that’s it from me.
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