Caitlin Clark Change Sparks Good Starts, Indiana Talks Blown Leads: Fever Notes
The Indiana Fever were seeking to stack the wins, and as of late, they're beginning to do just that.
Their success has come just as Caitlin Clark has begun to hit her stride. In the Fever's most recent win, Clark finished with 25 points and has topped that mark in consecutive games for the first time since her rookie season. Clark appears to have shaken off her early struggles when shooting from deep, going 5-of-10 from three in their most recent win over the Connecticut Sun.
It's no secret that the Fever's success on the offensive end of the floor is spearheaded by Clark. Not only does she find multiple ways to score, but her elite passing and playmaking ability generate buckets for her teammates. But there's one recent change in the Fever's early rotation that has brought them a spark.
Recently Clark's playing time has increased, with her time in the first quarter specifically going up. She is averaging 9.3 minutes played (of 10 total) in the opening period during the three-game winning streak. That's up from the 7.2 she had averaged in the first quarter prior.
The Fever star being subbed out early in contests had been a point of contention for some with coach Stephanie White's rotation, particularly after the blowout loss to the Portland Fire that saw Clark, Aliyah Boston, and Lexie Hull taken out with 6:30 still to play in the 1st and Indiana ahead.
This has since been adjusted and Clark's average total time spent on the court has also increased from 30 minutes over her first 9 games to 35.7 over the last three.
The tweak to the rotation early in the game has coincided with the team jumping out to early leads.
With her injury struggles in 2025, and the back soreness that caused her to miss one contest in 2026, it's certainly possible that her health was a factor in the ramp-up. And the overall increase in Clark's minutes is encouraging to see and is a good indicator that she is back to full strength.
Kelsey Mitchell, Aliyah Boston Talk Blown Leads
The Fever have not struggled with getting out to leads early in games, but holding them has been an issue. The Fever have blown double-digit advantages in each of the last four games. Over the last three, they've then had to rely on clutch late-game heroics and resilient runs to regain the lead and capture the win.
Their most recent game saw them blow a 11-point advantage against the Sun. Prior to that, the Fever squandered a 19-point lead against the Chicago Sky and relied on a burst in overtime to close the door. In their June 8 meeting with the Washington Mystics, they saw a 17-point lead vanish in the second half and were rescued by a 31-foot Caitlin Clark game-winning shot.
During practice on Monday, Aliyah Boston touched on the team's recent inability to put teams away.
"I think we're still working on that part. Not putting ourselves in that situation. But I'm still proud of us. Closing games, it doesn't have to be pretty," Boston said.
"I feel like most of it is controllable for us and I think that's where we just have to get better is making sure that we continue to execute the things that we're working, but then also I think defensively we have a little lapses here and there, and both teams that we played have just been able to capitalize on that. So, for us just making sure that we're on our P's and Q's every moment," she added.
Kelsey Mitchell, who has been a part of the Fever organization for all nine of her seasons, also provided a veteran interpretation on why the Fever have given up big leads.
"Growing pains I'm going to assume that's what it is. I think for us it's about keep finding ways to really not let it happen, but you know be able to withstand runs when people make because that's just part of life and a part of the game, but I think ultimately you want to just be a little bit more disciplined to keep people out of it," she said.
The Fever look to clean things up in their next matchup against one of the WNBA's newest expansion teams, the Toronto Tempo, on Tuesday.
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Lindsay Burke covers women’s basketball for Indiana Fever On SI and Women’s Fastbreak On SI. She graduated from Purdue University Fort Wayne with a Bachelor's Degree in journalism and a minor in media production. Early in her career she covered ECHL hockey, the NFL and college football and has since expanded her expertise to the WNBA and the Fever franchise.
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