Indiana Fever Clinch WNBA Playoff Spot With 94-65 Win Over Washington Mystics
The Indiana Fever clinched a spot in the 2025 WNBA playoffs with a 94-65 blowout of the Washington Mystics on the road. For the Caitlin Clark-less Fever, it will be their second straight playoff berth. Meanwhile, the Mystics were eliminated from contention last weekend and look toward an offseason of rebuilding.
Fever Win With Balanced Attack
Without Clark, Indiana has had a much more balanced attack on offense. Natasha Howard led five Fever players in double-figures with 17 points, and added four rebounds, two steals, and one assist. Aerial Powers and Shey Peddy made big contributions off the bench. Powers had 15 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals, and a block. Peddy hit all three of her three-pointers and contributed 13 points, two rebounds, and a steal.
Aliyah Boston posted her 17th double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds, while adding five assists and one steal. Kelsey Mitchell, Indiana’s leading scorer on the season, struggled from the field, missing all four of her three-point attempts and hitting just 40% of her shots overall. Mitchell finished with ten points, two steals, and one assist. The Fever were able to force the Mystics into 21 turnovers, while committing only six themselves. Indiana scored 27 points off those Washington miscues.
Citron Paces Mystics, Sets Record
Sonia Citron led the Mystics with 17 points and added two rebounds, one steal, and one block. With those points, Citron set Washington’s single-season scoring record with 644 points, surpassing Brittney Sykes’ 636 from just two years ago. Sykes, who replaced the injured Clark in this year’s WNBA All-Star Game, was traded to the Seattle Storm before the August trade deadline.
Kiki Iriafen pitched in 11 points, five rebounds, two assists, and a steal for the Mystics, and Shakira Austin added eleven points, seven rebounds, two blocks, and an assist. Washington led after one quarter, 20-19, but turnovers soon turned the game into a rout. The Mystics out-rebounded the Fever, but not much else went their way. The team shot just 28.6% from behind the three-point line and 43.9% overall. Meanwhile, Indiana shot 51.4% from the field against Washington’s defense, and 47.4% from beyond the arc.
Indiana Limps Into The Postseason
While the Fever have made the playoffs, they may not have much to celebrate. The team has five players out for the year, including Clark, their biggest star. Clark was averaging 16.5 points, 8.8 assists, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.6 steals per game. Add to that the losses of Sophie Cunningham, Sydney Colson, Aari McDonald, and Chloe Bibby, and Indiana will be limping into the playoffs as a six- or seven-seed.
The good news is that if the playoffs started today, that would mean facing the Atlanta Dream or the Las Vegas Aces. The Fever were 2-2 against the Dream and 2-1 against the Aces. There is still a tiny chance that the Phoenix Mercury could move ahead of either of those teams in the seeding. Indiana was 1-2 against the Mercury this season.
Closing Out The Regular Season
Indiana (23-20) will close out the regular season at home on Tuesday against the Minnesota Lynx (33-9). Minnesota boasts the league’s best record and has clinched home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. Washington (16-27) will wrap up its season on Tuesday as well, visiting the New York Liberty (25-17).
