Dallas Wings Coach Details Plan to Slow Down Caitlin Clark

The Dallas Wings defeated the Indiana Fever by a score of 91-85 on Thursday night, which gave the Wings a 2-1 season series win over the Fever.

Star Fever guard had an off night from the field, scoring just 10 points on 4 of 15 from the field (including 2 of 8 from three-point range) to go along with nine assists and four rebounds in 35 minutes played.

Wings coach Jose Fernandez spoke to the media after the game. When asked about the defense Dallas played on Clark Thursday night, Fernandez said, "Well, we wanted to get it out of her hands. [In] a pick-and-roll situation, in the middle of the floor, she's so good. So, if it was gonna be on the side of the floor, we wanted to get it out of her hands and make other people make shots."

Dallas Coach when asked about the Wings defense on Caitlin Clark. “We wanted to get it out of her hands” “she is so good” “we wanted to get it out of her hands and make other people make shots” pic.twitter.com/9HpFN3OvcA
— Its_Just_Basketball (@Fever_Rising_) August 21, 2026

It was definitely a frustrating game for Clark, which manifested in one spicy exchange with Wings guard Paige Bueckers before halftime.

Trying to get the ball out of Clark's hands and force other Fever players to execute on offense isn't a novel strategy and is probably something Fernandez has preached to his roster in past games, including when the Fever beat the Wings last Friday.

But it seemed to have worked better in this third and final contest between Dallas and Indiana, although that might also be more chalked up to an uncharacteristically poor shooting night from the third-year Fever star.

What Wings' Victory Over Fever Might Mean Moving Forward

This win over Indiana was important for Dallas for several reasons. It meant they won the season series, which would therefore give Dallas the playoff seeding tiebreaker if these two squads finish the regular season with equal records.

But since the Fever are three games ahead of the Wings with seven regular season games left, it's unlikely Dallas will catch up.

The win also kept Dallas (who is currently the No. 8 seed) within striking distance of the sixth seed, which is held by the Washington Mystics. The Wings are now one game away from them in the standings, and the Wings have a much more favorable schedule for the rest of the season.

Perhaps most important of all for the Wings is that they had lost two straight games and five of their last six before beating the Fever, so this was a way for them to get back on track. Sometimes all it takes is one win to right the ship, and this solid team victory could be the catalyst for Dallas to enter the playoffs on a solid streak.

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