Fever to Face Aces in First Round of WNBA Playoffs

Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever will face off with A'ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces in a best-of -three first-round series.

Jun 22, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) dribbles the ball against Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson (22) during the second half of a WNBA basketball game at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Indiana Fever did not close the WNBA regular season on the best note, as they were blown out by the Minnesota Lynx. But Indiana did not have all that much to play for from a seeding standpoint, given home-court advantage was off the table and they couldn't control the result of other games.

Because they lost and the Washington Mystics beat the Chicago Sky, the Mystics moved into the fifth seed with the Fever falling to sixth. The two teams have the same record but Washington took the tiebreaker by winning the head-to-head season series on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Las Vegas Aces bested the Phoenix Mercury and the Golden State Valkyries stormed back to beat the Los Angeles Sparks, so those two teams held their respective seeds, with the Valkyries finishing second, and the Aces third. This means a date for the Fever with the defending champions.

Indiana took two of three from Las Vegas in the regular season, with the lone loss coming in overtime. The first win came with both Caitlin Clark and A'ja Wilson sidelined, in a Fever rout. The second contest was also a blowout with both superstars in the lineup, though Clark was on a minutes restriction.

Indiana had a big lead in the third matchup but Clark uncharacteristically missed two free throws late and Kelsey Mitchell also missed one that would have sealed the game. That allowed Chelsea Gray to hit a three as time expired, sending the game to an extra period. Gray hit another three to win it in OT.

Fever Match Up Well With Aces

It's never desirable to be on the opposite end of the floor of Wilson, Gray, and Jackie Young. The Aces are attempting to win their fourth championship in five years after all.

But, the Fever do match up well with Las Vegas, as proven by their regular season record and the fact they held big leads in every meeting.

Aliyah Boston guards Wilson as well as any player in the league and the Aces don't have elite wing depth to exploit Indiana's defensive weaknesses. Not to mention the Fever are the faster team and should be able to effectively push the pace against the decorated veteran opponents.

It will take Clark and Mitchell lighting it up to take down Las Vegas, but that is exactly what the Fever's All-Star guards have been doing all season long. Now they will attempt to take those exploits into the postseason and take down the champs.

The best-of-three series begins on Sunday.