Thursday night’s game between the Sky and Fever looked like a replay of their meeting nine days ago, specifically in the closing minute of the fourth quarter.
After Kelsey Mitchell sank a fadeaway with less than two seconds to play, the Sky trailed by two with control of the final possession. But instead of the 2.7 seconds they were working with last time, the Sky had just 1.1 to get a shot off. The inbounds pass went to Alanna Smith — another de ja vu moment — but this time her three-point attempt from the top of the key was off the mark and the Fever held on for a 92-90 victory.
“With this team, they don’t stop fighting,” the Sky’s Marina Mabrey said. “You think you got a stop, and they get an offensive rebound. You think you have your hand on the ball, and then they come up with it. They’ve kind of made that their identity, and you have to match it at all times. I don’t think we matched it on the defensive end.”
The Sky (5-6) held a seven-point lead with seven minutes to play in the fourth quarter, but an 11-0 run by the Fever (4-6) erased it.
Dana Evans led the way for the Sky in the fourth quarter with 15 points on 5-for-6 shooting, including one three and four free throws. She finished with 21 points, two rebounds, three assists and two blocks.
Without Kahleah Copper, the Sky needed that from Evans. They also needed their other stars to step up, and Mabrey did until the fourth quarter. She finished with a career-high 36 points on 14-for-22 shooting, including 6-for-11 from three, but was neutralized in the fourth. She had just two field-goal attempts for three points.
“I can do a better job screening when they’re face-guarding me,” Mabrey said. “So I can get people open rather than thinking to get open myself.”
The Sky were outscored 42-36 in the paint and gave up 13 points off of second-chance looks. Sky coach/general manager James Wade attributed both to the Fever’s ability to assert their will.
Wade wasn’t pleased with the officiating. His main concern was the Fever’s 24 free-throw attempts compared to the Sky’s 11.
“That team did not deserve 24 free throws,” he said. “They just didn’t. It hurts that I got them to a place where they’re getting treated like they’re getting treated. We go into games and we know how it’s going to be called, and I can’t save them.”
Wade emphasized the fouls called on Mabrey, who had five. Robyn Parks did, too.
Parks was inserted in the starting lineup in Copper’s absence and posted a career-high 13 points on 5-for-6 shooting with three rebounds. Entering the game, she was held scoreless in five of her 10 games.
“We didn’t win the game,” Wade said. “When we coach, we coach to win the game. We don’t coach to get close because Kahleah’s not on the floor. There’s no victory in Kahleah not playing and us getting close.”
