Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham Can’t Help but Tip Cap to Valkyries After Fever Loss
After taking down the defending champions for the second time this season, the Indiana Fever couldn’t keep their win streak alive against the Golden State Valkyries. They suffered an 88-75 loss, as Caitlin Clark struggled to find a rhythm early in the game.
After the game, Clark and Sophie Cunningham gave the Valkyries a lot of credit for how they played.
“They’re in my grill,” Clark said, per a recording of the postgame media availability on the Fever’s YouTube channel. “They’re probably the best defensive team in the league. They’re really good at that.”
She also added, “They’re a great half-court defensive team. They’re hard to score on.”
Cunningham noted, “They’re a really good team. They have an offense, and they stick with their offense, and they have fast guards. They have great spacing. They are really a very fundamental team on both sides of the ball, and that’s a tough matchup for anybody, but honestly, at the end of the day, we have to stick to our schemes.”
The Valkyries executed on both ends of the floor
Slowing down Clark was clearly a focal point for the Valkyries. When Veronica Burton was on the court, she was glued to Clark, doing her best to deny the ball, take away 3-pointers, and stay in front of her on drives.
But even when Burton had to switch or wasn’t in the game, Clark didn’t get much of a break. The Valkyries’ roster is filled with good perimeter defenders, and they had a clear game plan to limit her long shots and send help on drives.
For example, early in the second quarter, Tiffany Hayes was on Clark. She fought through a screen by Monique Billings, after which Clark moved the ball. When she got it back behind the 3-point line, Hayes closed out quickly and well. Clark beat her off the dribble, but Kaitlyn Chen and Kaila Charles were right there with the help defense. Charles stripped the ball from Clark, and Hayes got to the free-throw line on the fast break.
Clark finished the game with 13 points on 4-14 shooting from the field and 1-8 from deep. She made four of her five free throws, though, and added 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block.
On the other end of the floor, the Valkyries didn’t shoot the three well, sinking just 33%, but they shot 52% from the field overall and scored two more points in the paint than the Fever. It was a balanced attack, as well. Six players scored in double digits, and the Fever struggled especially to keep Chen away from the rim in the third quarter.
The Valkyries have become one of the best two-way teams in the W
The Valkyries burst onto the scene as a strong defensive team last season, finishing third in defensive rating behind the Minnesota Lynx and Atlanta Dream. They struggled offensively, though, posting the fourth-worst offensive rating in the league.
This year, they are still a monster defensively, posting the best defensive rating in the W and allowing the fewest points in the paint and the second-lowest field-goal percentage. They have also improved offensively and currently have the eighth-best offensive rating in the W.
The Valkyries still lack that true star—Gabby Williams has been great, but just imagine how much better this team would be with an established MVP candidate or true go-to scorer—but they are hanging with the top teams in the W. They have the second-best record at the moment and have won games against every playoff team except for the Lynx and Las Vegas Aces.
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Elaine Blum covers women’s basketball for On SI from Europe. She has been writing about women's hoops since 2023 and holds a Bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism and a master’s degree in American Studies with a focus on women’s and gender studies. She started playing basketball when she was 10 years old and won several league and state championships at the youth and senior level.