UNCASVILLE, Conn. — The Indiana Fever entered the WNBA playoffs with many firsts in touch.
Sunday’s first-round opener against the Connecticut Sun will mark the franchise’s first postseason appearance since 2016, as well as the first playoff game for every member of Indiana’s starting five, including star rookie Caitlin Clark.
But the No. 6-seeded Fever are channeling the strength and youth that have helped them become one of the best teams in the WNBA after the Olympic break in hopes of helping them draw attention from the Sun No.
“You can’t be too tight; that won’t allow you to play good basketball,” Clark said Friday. “I think that’s what made us successful in the second half of the season, is the fun and the energy that we have and the light mood. So I think it’s good when you see everyone. But at the same time. This time, I feel that everyone have come close to this because these playoffs are very important for everyone on this team.
Teammate and former teammate No. to each other, especially before each game, let’s have fun, let’s make sure we continue to play together and even now, we’ve scouted, we know exactly what the game plan is, and that’s just making sure we continue. to stay loose in the moment.”
Of the eight teams in the playoffs, Indiana sports the least collective postseason experience — 19 contests among four players — and faces a Sun squad with 222 playoff games under its belt. That’s the fifth-largest difference between opponents in WNBA postseason history.
While the Fever’s seven-year playoff drought is the longest in league history, Connecticut has been in the postseason eight straight seasons, making at least the semifinals each of the past five years.
But Indiana, also the third-youngest team in the league, tried not to see the experience as a detriment.
“I don’t know if that’s good or bad,” Fever coach Christie Sides said. “They don’t know. So the ones who don’t know, they’re just going to go out there, they’re playing hard, right? They’ve been playing hard since we jumped the ball, so the ones who don’t know, they don’t know. I’m just going to keep doing what I’ve been doing all season.
Clark added: “Maybe it’s good. You’re not overwhelmed by the moment, and you just approach it as another game, and prepare the same way and go out there and compete.”
The Sun won the regular season series against the Fever, 3-1. The first three meetings came in Indiana which opened 13 games, and Connecticut routed them with an average margin of 19 points when at home. But the last time the teams met, on August 28 in Indianapolis, the Fever won 84-80, their first win over the Suns since 2021.
“I know they’re going to continue to get better,” Connecticut coach Stephanie White said of Indiana’s developing chemistry since May. “We know he’s going to be better in his reads. We know he has all the pieces. His reads are cleaner, his shots are getting open, and since the break, he’s been a tough shooter … just having a core group and superstars stepping up to the plate.” that and getting better, but other people are also established in their roles, they know what they want and they are elite in that role.
Star Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell will miss Sunday after an injury scare in the first quarter of Indiana’s regular season finale against the Washington Mystics. Mitchell told reporters on Saturday that he felt fine and that he was out on Thursday as a precaution.
The best-of-three first round guarantees two games in Connecticut (Game 2 is Saturday). In a split event, the winner-takes-all Game 3 will be in Indianapolis.
“I think I’m excited,” Clark said. “I think you can tell just by the vibe that everyone is really fired up and just ready to start playing.”