The Las Vegas Aces are hosting the Indiana Fever on Sunday afternoon for the first time this season. A’ja Wilson and Caitlin Clark are back from their respective injuries, but both teams are still working through some issues despite having their star players back.
The Fever dropped to .500 after an 88-77 loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Aces fell into a three-game losing streak and a 5-7 record following a 90-83 loss to the Seattle Storm on Friday.
Although Las Vegas won all four of their regular season meetings against Indiana in 2024, the Fever have been the stronger team this season and might be better than their record suggests.
Where to watch Indiana Fever vs. Las Vegas Aces
Date: Sunday, June 22 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
Location: T-Mobile Arena — Las Vegas
TV: ESPN | Streaming: fubo (try for free)
Aces are struggling despite A’ja Wilson’s return
The Aces had to play three games without their star player because she was in concussion protocol. Wilson registered a double-double in her return against the Seattle Storm, but having her back on the floor was not enough for Las Vegas to get the win.
Wilson was a bit rusty and made some uncharacteristic mistakes. However, coach Becky Hammon cut her some slack because of the time she missed. Las Vegas has been struggling with depth, defense and consistency — particularly in the third quarter. Those issues were on full display against the Storm, and Hammon said she might consider changing up who starts in the second half.
Jackie Young has been another key player for the Aces while averaging 18.4 points per game. However, in the loss against the Storm, Hammon said she wanted to see more energy from her starting five and highlighted the effort shown by rookie Aaliyah Nye.
Caitlin Clark needs to bounce back
Clark flirted with a triple-double in the Fever’s loss to the Valkyries on Thursday, but those stats might be deceiving because it was not a strong game for her. Despite having 11 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, Clark went 3 of 14 from the field and missed all seven of her 3-point attempts. She also turned the ball over six times and struggled on defense.
Regardless of that performance, and also missing five games due to a quad strain, Clark is still one of the top candidates to win MVP this season. The Fever have leveled up with her on the roster, but Indiana returning to the playoffs would also be because of Aliyah Boston. The former South Carolina Gamecock has shown a lot of improvement in her third WNBA season by becoming a more confident and efficient player — in fact, she currently leads the WNBA in field goal percentage. The loss against the Valkyries could have been much worse, but Boston put on a valiant effort with 17 points and 12 rebounds while shooting over 63% from the field.