INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) -- The Indiana Fever defeated the Atlanta Dream on Thursday night inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse, 83-71. The Fever beat the Dream in Indiana's first of six Commissioner's Cup games.
Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell had a monster night, scoring 25 points and shooting 11-15 from the field. Mitchell led all scorers. Mitchell also totaled over 5,000 career points in the WNBA during Thursday's win.
Mitchell expressed her belief in her team after snapping the Fever's two-game losing streak.
"I think it speaks to the culture," Mitchell said. "I think over the last couple of days, from our last day in Portland, from the time we hopped on the plane as a group, our energy shifted as a group. I think our culture constantly made changes. I think that when you have hard conversations as a group, you pour into one another. You get days like this because you actually poured in. You did the work the right way."
Caitlin Clark also had a much better showing after scoring just six points in Saturday's loss to the Portland Fire. On Thursday, Clark had 17 points and connected on two three-pointers.
Defense also played a huge role in Indiana's win over the Dream. Entering Thursday's contest, the Fever had already allowed 100-plus points on three separate occasions this season. On Thursday, the Dream shot just 34 percent from the field.
Fever head coach Stephanie White was happy with Indiana's team effort on Thursday.
"It feels great," White said. "There's a lot of ups and downs in this league. When you see some of the work that you put in physically, mentally, emotionally, all the things, and come out and play the way we did. I mean, that's the standard. That's what it looks like."
With the win, Indiana improves to a 5-4 record on the season. The Fever now look ahead to a road game against the New York Liberty this Saturday at 8:00 p.m.
