Fever outpace Tempo to extend win streak; Brittney Sykes exits early: Takeaways

INDIANAPOLIS — Caitlin Clark stole the show Tuesday as she steered the Indiana Fever to a 113-91 victory over the Toronto Tempo. The two-time All-Star wowed the crowd with a variety of fancy passes to lead the Fever to their fourth straight win and first victory over the Tempo, who are in their inaugural season.

Indiana is now 9-5 and has won six straight home games. Toronto fell to 7-8 and has lost three straight. Brittney Sykes, the Tempo’s leading scorer this season, left the game in the third quarter with what appeared to be a noncontact injury.

Caitlin Clark orchestrates offense

Clark struggled shooting the ball Thursday, missing 10 of 15 field goal attempts and seven of eight 3-pointers. At one point in the third quarter, Clark threw her hands up in frustration after missing a wide-open 3. Despite her shooting woes, Clark still controlled the game by consistently putting her teammates in position to score. She registered 14 assists, including nine in the first half, and added 21 points. Clark threw arguably her best pass of the night on a behind-the-back assist to Makayla Timpson for a layup that gave Indiana a 42-40 lead in the second quarter.

Tuesday’s performance marked Clark’s 14th game with at least 20 points and 10 assists, and her fourth such game this season. Clark also played in her 13th game of the season, matching the total she played last year during an injury-riddled campaign. Clark has only missed one game this year, a home matchup against the Portland Fire on May 20, due to a sore back.

Sophie Cunningham stays hot

Three nights ago, Cunningham sealed the Fever’s victory over the Connecticut Sun by scoring 11 straight points in the fourth quarter. The veteran guard picked up right where she left off on Thursday, when she tied her career high with six 3-pointers. Cunningham poured in a season-high 24 points while shooting 8 of 11 from the field in 24 minutes off the bench. She caught fire in the third quarter with three triples, the last of which gave Indiana an 85-73 lead at the end of the frame.

Kelsey Mitchell had an efficient outing as well, only missing two of her 11 shot attempts. The three-time All-Star scored a game-high 27 points, extending her franchise record of 48 games with at least 25 points. Mitchell is averaging a career-high 20.8 points per game this season.

Aliyah Boston, a three-time All-Star as well, registered 18 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. Tuesday marked her fourth straight double-double.

Brittney Sykes’ noncontact injury

Sykes earned her first All-Star nod last season and was off to a strong start this year, too. She entered Tuesday’s game averaging a career-high 20.7 points per game, and she scored 11 points in 19 minutes before leaving the game with what appeared to be a noncontact injury. The Tempo eventually ruled Sykes out with a foot injury.

After passing the ball to teammate Temi Fagbenle, Sykes cut backdoor toward the basket, but as she planted to run, she collapsed to the floor. She stayed down for a few minutes while her teammates and trainers checked on her before she was helped back to the locker room. Sykes appeared to be able to put some weight on her lower body, though she was walking very gingerly.

Laura Juskaite paced the Tempo with 19 points. Marina Mabrey chipped in with 18 points, and María Conde had 12 points off the bench.