The Indiana Fever jumped out to a 23-point lead in the first half against the Dallas Wings on Friday, but they were clinging to a two-point advantage as the clock ticked under four minutes in the fourth quarter. After blowing double-digit leads in each of their last three defeats, the Fever could not afford to let this game slip away.
Kelsey Mitchell ensured that they did not. The veteran guard took control of the offense near midcourt, used a screen from Aliyah Boston and darted through the lane for a tough and-one. Though she missed the free throw, Natasha Howard recovered the rebound to reset the offense. A few seconds later, Mitchell again got into the paint and set up Howard for a bucket to push the advantage back to six. The Wings never got any closer.
Mitchell finished with 32 points and seven assists, setting new season-highs in both categories, and shot 11 of 17 from the field, including 4 of 6 from 3-point range. The Fever, playing without Caitlin Clark for the second consecutive game due to a groin strain, held on for a 94-86 win to get back to .500 on the season at 8-8.
In the process, Mitchell became the fourth-fastest player in WNBA history to reach 4,000 career points, 500 rebounds, 500 assists and 500 3-pointers. She joined that club — which only includes 14 players — in 249 career games. The only players to do so faster are Katie Smith (241 games), Arike Ogunbowale (198 games) and Diana Taurasi (198 games).
“I just like to stay in the rhythm and stay in the flow of the game, but I definitely like to play confident down the stretch of games,” Mitchell said. “Our team makes it easy for me to get downhill and create as much as I can.”
Mitchell has certainly been in a rhythm as of late. This was the fourth consecutive game with at least 20 points for the veteran, which matches the third-longest such streak of her career. Over her last five games, Mitchell is averaging 22.8 points and 3.8 assists on 56.3/51.5/77.3 shooting splits. During that span she is third in the league in scoring and first in 3-pointers made (17).
Throughout her career, Mitchell has been a slow starter. In 48 career games in May, she’s shooting 39.4% from the field, which is by far her least efficient month. Her play picks up as the summer goes along, and that trend has continued this season. If we zoom out even further than the recent five-game sample size, you’ll see a clear difference since the calendar flipped to June.
Mitchell’s splits by month this season
May
6
16.3
38.7
29.0
73.9
June
10
20.5
49.0
38.2
72.1
When the Fever took off after the Olympic break last season, they did so because Clark and Mitchell were arguably the best backcourt in the league. That hasn’t been the case so far in 2025 — at least not on a regular basis. Clark has dealt with injuries and a major shooting slump, while Mitchell struggled to start the season.
Mitchell’s recent resurgence is a great sign for a Fever team that has dealt with its fair share of adversity this season. Clark has missed seven of their 16 games, while Sophie Cunningham and coach Stephanie White have also missed multiple contests. Furthermore, key offseason acquisition DeWanna Bonner turned out to be a bust and recently forced her way out of town.
Despite it all, the Fever sit in sixth place and are right in the mix for a top-four seed. They still have a chance to make some noise this season, especially if Mitchell can maintain this rhythm once Clark returns.