The Indiana Fever’s season of relentless perseverance came to a dramatic, heartbreaking end as the Las Vegas Aces defeated the Fever 107-98 in overtime of Game 5 in the WNBA Semifinals in Las Vegas.
For a team that has lived by the motto “we over me” while battling a historic bevy of injuries all season, the Fever proved their grit by pushing the No. 2 seed Aces to the edge. They forced the extra period even after losing star guard Kelsey Mitchell to a scary leg injury in the third quarter and center Aliyah Boston to a disqualifying sixth foul late in the game.
The victory punches the Aces’ ticket to the WNBA Finals, where they will take on the Phoenix Mercury in a seven-game series starting Oct. 3.
The Fever’s final stand was a microcosm of their entire campaign: unyielding effort in the face of insurmountable odds. The true challenge began in the third quarter after a back-and-forth first half that ended with the Aces holding a slim 47-45 lead.
With 5:05 remaining in the period, Mitchell — who led the Fever with 15 points at the time and hit all three of her 3-point attempts — went down with an apparent non-contact leg injury. Teammates immediately shielded her with towels for privacy.
A stretcher was brought onto the court, but in a moment of pure determination, Mitchell refused it. Team personnel helped her off the court, unable to bear weight on her left leg. She did not return to the game.
The devastating blow of the injury left Indiana’s championship hopes fleeting. However, Fever head coach Stephanie White implored her remaining players in a timeout to ‘fight for (Mitchell) right now,” urging them to lean on their season-long mantra of “We over me.”
The Aces stretched their lead to a game-high nine points twice in the third frame, but the Fever simply would not fold. With Mitchell sidelined, veteran guard Odyssey Sims stepped up in a major way, fueling a dramatic fourth-quarter comeback. Sims scored a playoff high 27 points, including 10 in the fourth quarter and overtime. She finished the game making 12 of 13 free throws.
The intense final quarter saw the Fever claw back from an eight-point deficit to tie the score 86-86 with 22.5 seconds left on a two-point floater by Sims. However, the team’s comeback suffered another critical blow late when all-star center Aliyah Boston was called for her sixth foul, disqualifying her from the rest of the contest. Boston finished with 11 points, nine defensive rebounds and a game-high 16 total rebounds.
In overtime, the depleted Fever could not keep pace with the Aces’ perimeter attack. Las Vegas outscored Indiana 21-12 in the extra five minutes to secure its trip to the WNBA Finals.
Aces stars A’ja Wilson and Jackie Young exploded, combining for 67 points, with Wilson leading all scorers with 35 points and Young adding 32 points and a game-high 10 assists.
For the Fever, the loss closes the book on a season defined by resilience, as they reached the WNBA Semifinals for the first time since 2015 despite missing six players due to injury entering Game 5, including all-star guard Caitlin Clark.
The team’s hardship additions, most notably Sims and Shey Peddy (13 points, 22:04 minutes), repeatedly provided clutch performances, a testament to the culture White instilled. However, the lack of depth — a direct result of their injury crisis — proved too much in the end against the Aces, a team boasting five Olympians.
“This wasn’t the result we wanted, but we can leave here with our heads held high,” Sims said.
Contact Multi-Media & Senior Sports Reporter Noral Parham at 317-762-7846. Follow him on Facebook @HorsemenSportsMedia. For more Fever news, click here.
Noral Parham is the multi-media & senior sports reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder, one of the oldest Black publications in the country. Parham has worked with various leagues to provide a diverse perspective in sports, including the Big Ten, Big East, IHSAA, IndyCar, MLB, NHRA, NFL, NBA, WNBA, WWE and the Olympics. Prior to joining the Recorder, Parham served as the community advocate of the MLK Center in Indianapolis and senior copywriter for an e-commerce and marketing firm in Denver.
