Two future playoff teams meet up on Wednesday when the Las Vegas Aces (22-13, 4th overall) take on the Indiana Fever (19-17, 6th overall). The Aces just lost on the road by four to the Liberty, while the Fever are coming off a four point home win over the Dream. This is the third of four matchups between these teams this season, as the Aces won the first two matchups at home. Las Vegas will stay in town and play the Fever again on Friday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 EST from the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, and can be found on NBATV.
Let’s get into your favorite WNBA picks for tonight’s matchup between Las Vegas and Indiana.
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Four Game Streak Snapped for Las Vegas
The Las Vegas Aces went into their last game in New York on a four-game win streak, but came away with a loss against the top the team in the WNBA. The Liberty won at home by four, but the Aces did cover the 9.5-point spread as underdogs. The Aces are currently the four-seed, but are unlikely to move up, as they are three games behind the Sun in third place, with only five games to go. There is a chance the Aces fall to fifth, as they are just one game ahead of the Seattle Storm. In the game against the Liberty, Kelsey Plum led the way with 25 points, while knocking down five three pointers in the close loss.
The original spread was set at a much lower number, but it was announced that the likely MVP A’ja Wilson would miss this game with an ankle injury. Plum was able to step up, and keep her hot shooting going with her 25-point performance, she is the best shooter on the team and is averaging 18.1 PPG and 4.4 APG on the year. Plum has made three or more three pointers in each of her last four games, scoring over 16 in each as a 5’8 guard. Wilson is listed as day-to-day, as there is no clear timetable for her return. Jackie Young is their next highest scorer, but she was relatively quiet in her last game only scoring 12 points with three assists in the loss. Young is averaging 16.2 PPG and 5.3 APG on the season. Megan Gustafson started in the middle with Wilson out, she is a 6’4 center but only played 15 minutes finishing with five points.
Las Vegas has the top scoring offense in the league at 86.4 PPG, and their defense ranks 6th by allowing 81.7 PPG. The Aces may need to find more scorers if Wilson is out again, as she leads the league in scoring with 27.3 PPG. Alysha Clark becomes their best frontcourt player when Wilson is out, but the undersized 5’11 forward only averages 6.0 PPG.
Fever Win Six of Seven
The Indiana Fever are the talk of the WNBA, as they have heated up recently, winning six of their last seven games. They have already locked up a spot in the postseason, and are currently the 6-seed in the playoff bracket. They are likely to remain in that spot, as they are 2.5-games behind the Storm in 5th, and two games ahead of the Mercury with just four games remaining on their schedule. In their last game, the Fever needed overtime to bear the Dream, getting a huge 30-point, 13-rebound game from Aliyah Boston.
Boston is the top post player for the Fever, she was the 2023 first overall pick in the WNBA draft, and is averaging 14.3 PPG and a team high 9.1 RPG on the year. She is a 6’5 forward, and has scored 20 or more in each of her last three games. You cannot talk about the Fever without talking about Caitlin Clark, she had a big game in the win over the Dream, with 26 points and 12 assists in the win. Clark has recently taken over as the lead scorer for the Fever, she averages 19.2 PPG, but has scored 24 or more in all of her last five games, with double-digit assists in four of those five as well. Clark leads the WNBA in assists with 8.5 per game, and in made three pointers-per game at 3.1. Kelsey Mitchell is another top scorer for Indiana, she is a 5’8 guard getting 19.1 PPG and also makes 2.7 three pointers per night.
The Fever are third in the league in scoring at 84.7 PPG, but their defense only ranks 11th by allowing 87.3 PPG. Turnovers have been a problem as they are 4th in the league at 14.3 per game, with Clark accounting for 5.7 of those. They are 5th in the league with 9.1 made threes per game.
Monday’s Top Plays
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Scott Steehn
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