Fever’s dynamic backcourt, Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell, keeps Indiana on record-chasing pace

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White spent most of her past 27 years working in the WNBA.

She’s rarely seen a backcourt as good as All-Star guards Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell.

On Friday, the dynamic duo did it again — each topping the 30-point mark for the fourth time this season to extend their own league record as the Fever rallied from a 14-point, first-quarter deficit to run away from the Connecticut Sun 111-91.

Clark and Mitchell each scored 34, with Mitchell extending her WNBA record for consecutive 20-point games to 24 while Clark added 12 assists for her fifth 30-10 double-double this season and the sixth of her career.

“The only one I can think of is DT (Diana Taurasi) and Cappie (Poindexter),” White said when asked to compare the top backcourts she’s seen. “I mean, you think back to those Phoenix days, they were a dynamic backcourt that could both up big numbers, could both get their own shot, could get other people involved. But it’s been a long time since we’ve seen the explosiveness of two players like Kelsey and Caitlin.”

How well have they been playing?

Well, with four games left in the regular season following the three-week FIBA Women’s World Cup break, the Fever are averaging 97.0 points per game — well ahead of Phoenix’s single season record of 93.9 in 2010.

And Clark started this week with as many 30-10 double-doubles as the rest of the entire league. She passed Sue Bird for third on the WNBA’s career list for points-assists double-doubles with No. 29 on Sunday in Chicago and added No. 30 on Friday after a four-day break.

Forward Makayla Thompson called Clark Indiana’s “gold.”

Clark insists it’s not the stat lines that motivate her. Winning does and with seven wins in their last nine games to move into fourth place, Clark should have something to smile about in Berlin.

“I mean, I don’t really care about the stats,” she said. “I think when I’m flowing and playing, that’s kind of what follows and I feel like that’s kind of how I’ve been over the last couple games. Obviously, you’re not going to have 30-plus, 10-plus every single night, but when you’re able to do that, it just allows the team to get going in a different way and, you know, making shots and getting people open, that’s contagious.”

Whatever Clark’s done, Mitchell has caught the milestone-setting Fever, too.

With four assists against the reeling Sun, she passed current assistant coach Briann January for second on Indiana’s career list. Mitchell now has 911, two more than January and only behind Hall of Famer Tamika Catchings.

Mitchell also extended her league record for consecutive 20-point games to 24 and she moved within 21 points of breaking A’ja Wilson’s single season scoring record of 1,021 set last season. Mitchell now has 1,001 with four games remaining when play resumes Sept. 18 at Toronto.

For White, it’s been a joy to watch.

“You watch her, and I think it’s easy to take for granted some of the things she does. I think oftentimes is is with great players,” White said, referring to Clark. “I think players are great because they make the complex things look really simple, and when she’s in a flow like this where she’s able to score, she’s playing at a pace we want her to play at, she’s moving the ball side to side, it’s really fun to watch and sometimes you can get caught up in it on the sideline, just watching. So it’s just really special what she’s doing.”

___

See AP’s full sports coverage here