SERIES WINNER: INDIANA

 

What to expect:

Chicago won all four of the games between these two teams in the regular season, so one might reasonably expect a repeat in this best-of-three series.  However, two of those games were played without Tamika Catchings.  The Fever isn’t really the Fever without Catchings, the 2011 MVP, 5-time defensive player of the year, and all-around one of the most respected players in the league.

Catchings is matched up against Elena Della Donne though, and this year, I’m betting on 2015 MVP Della Donne to see the Sky through.  She’s surrounded by a vicious backcourt- Cappie Pondexter plays shooting guard while Courtney Vandersloot plays point, not to mention 6th woman of the year Allie Quigley coming off the bench.  The Sky are hungry from being swept in the Finals last year by the Phoenix Mercury, and I fully expect them to be facing off against the winner of the Liberty-Mystics matchup in the Eastern Conference Finals next week.

 

Game 1: Chicago 77, Indiana 72

 

Key Players (Fever):

Tamika Catchings- 21 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals

Marissa Coleman- 16 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals

Erlana Larkins- 8 points, 10 rebounds

Briann January- 2 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds

 

Key Players (Sky):

Allie Quigley- 22 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds

Courtney Vandersloot- 17 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds

Elena Della Donne- 14 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals, 4 turnovers

Jessica Breland- 12 points, 9 rebounds

 

Courtney Vandersloot and Allie Quigley were beasts in the first half, scoring 22 points together and making up for Elena Della Donne’s underwhelming 2 points.  The Fever battled back from a 9-point 1st quarter deficit behind 11 each from Shenise Johnson and Tamika Catchings and at the half, the Sky led 35-36.

Elena started getting her shots to fall in the third quarter, but Marissa Coleman broke her icy cold shooting streak of the last few games (15 missed three-pointers in a row!) in a big way.  She scored 8 points in a 14-2 Indiana run that put the Fever up 58-54 with 7 minutes left in the fourth quarter.  Quigley and the Sky came back to answer with a 7-0 run and it was a back-and-forth battle to the end.  The Sky played their usual impressive offense and they rallied for the 5-point win.

Cappie Pondexter went scoreless and was essentially a non-factor.  Shocking for a veteran of her ability, and I seriously doubt she’ll be so quiet next game.

 

Game 2: Indiana 89, Chicago 82

 

Key Players (Fever):

Tamika Catchings- 22 points, 9 rebounds, 5 steals, 2 blocks

Shavonte Zellous- 16 points (66.7% FG), 3 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals

Lynetta Kizer- 12 points, 5 rebounds (all offensive)

Shenise Johnson- 11 points, 5 rebounds

Erlana Larkins- 4 points, 12 rebounds

 

Key Players (Sky):

Courtney Vandersloot- 19 points (72.7% FG), 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 turnovers

Erika De Souza- 11 points, 8 rebounds

Elena Delle Donne- 11 points, 2 blocks

Cappie Pondexter- 10 points, 2 steals

Jessica Breland- 8 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 steals

 

Chicago came out strong to get an early 14-8 lead, but the Fever, led by Catchings and Zellous, responded by staying aggressive and driving to the basket, forcing the referees to reward them with foul shots (Indiana made 8/11 in the quarter alone).  Vandersloot was the main offensive weapon for the Sky as she scored 11 points on ⅚ shooting, and once again Delle Donne failed to make her usual MVP-caliber impact with only 6 points (25% from the field).  To be completely fair to Delle Donne, Catchings and Larkins are pretty tough defenders.  The game was tied 20-20 going into the 2nd quarter, and by the end of it, Indiana led 42-40.  

The third quarter was a tight one too- first Indiana pulled ahead by 5, then Chicago led 56-55, and finally the Fever finished the quarter went on a 10-2 run before Allie Quigley hit a wild three with only seconds remaining and made the score 69-65 Indiana.  She hit another three to begin the fourth, and Cappie went on a personal 6-0 run followed by a 4-0 Vandersloot burst to put the Sky up briefly 78-77.  Indiana turned up the heat, though, out-hustling Chicago for rebounds, only allowing single shots, and forcing turnovers to hold the Sky scoreless in the nearly the last 3 minutes of the game which resulted in their 89-82 win.

 

Game 3: Indiana 100, Chicago 89

 

Key Players (Fever):

Tamika Catchings- 27 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists

Shenise Johnson- 22 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists

Erlana Larkins- 18 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals

Briann January- 10 points, 8 assists

 

Key Players (Sky):

Elena Delle Donne- 40 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists

Allie Quigley- 18 points

Jessica Breland- 10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks

Courtney Vandersloot- 5 points, 5 rebounds, 14 assists, 4 turnovers

 

Elena Delle Donne did everything except win in this one.  She had 14 points in the 1st quarter with three three-pointers and making every shot she attempted.  Marissa Coleman had three threes as well for the Fever, however, and Catchings had 7, so the game was an even 28-28 after 10 minutes of play.  The offensive show continued into the 2nd quarter, and at halftime both teams were still shooting over 60% with only 2 turnovers for the Fever and 4 for the Sky for a 52-47 lead.

The Fever led by as many as 11 points late in the third quarter, probably because Chicago couldn’t find the basket and were pretty ineffective on defense in the first 7 minutes back on the court.  The fourth quarter was another scoring frenzy.  Erlana Larkins was a beast in the post, making lay-ups, forcing fouls, and getting rebounds on both ends.  She had 8 points in the quarter to go along with Tamika’s 12 points and sweet feeds.  Breland had some good blocks and defensive efforts and Delle Donne had 10 points in the final 10, but the Sky’s performance as a whole was not enough to bring them closer than within 5.  Ultimately, Indiana scored 100 points to the Sky’s 89 and kept their season alive for at least 2 more games, ending Chicago’s championship ambitions.

This means, unfortunately, that we won’t be seeing Elena Delle Donne until next May. :(  The Sky plays a fun, uptempo version of basketball that is always entertaining to watch and would have been great to see in the Eastern Conference Finals, but they’ll get another chance next year.  Now we get to see if Indiana can manage another upset against their next opponents- the New York Liberty.