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Mitchell and Clark carry Fever to 14th win, most by team since 2016
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Mitchell and Clark carry Fever to 14th win, most by team since 2016

ATLANTA — Kelsey Mitchell scored 29 points, including the game-winning free throw with 5 seconds left, Caitlin Clark added 19 points and the Indiana Fever disappointed Atlanta’s record crowd by beating the Dream 84-79 on Monday night.

In the final seconds, with no timeout, Atlanta missed two 3-pointers but grabbed two offensive rebounds before fumbling the ball, leading to Mitchell’s free throws.

Aliyah Boston had 14 points and 11 rebounds for Indiana and Damiris Dantas had 33 off the bench to help the Fever (14-16) win their most in a season since they were 17-17 in 2016. Clark made four 3-pointers to tie the rookie season record of 85 set by Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard in 2022.

Clark also added seven assists and seven rebounds to her long-range shooting stats. It was her 21st game this season with at least 15 points and five assists, which is the most in a season in WNBA history, according to ESPN Stats & Information Research.

Atlanta (10-19), which began the day half a game behind the final playoff spot, trailed by 18 early in the second half when Clark made a 3-pointer before outscoring the Fever 41-32. The Dream pulled within two before Indiana’s five-point possession muted the rally.

Tina Charles scored 21 points to lead Atlanta, which moved the game to the home stadium of the Atlanta Hawks and set a record attendance of 17,608, surpassing the crowd for the last game against the Fever (17,575). Howard had 16 points, Allisha Gray 12 (none after Boston was flagrantly fouled midway through the third quarter) and Jordin Canada 10 for the Dream.

Howard’s 3 put Atlanta up 76-74 with 4:13 to play, but after an offensive rebound, Clark found Lexie Hull for an and-1 layup a minute later. Hull rebounded her missed free throw and set up Mitchell for an and-1 layup that she converted for an 81-74 lead.

Nia Coffey made it 3-0 for Atlanta with just under a minute left to make it 82-79.

Mitchell had 15 points and Boston made 12 of 21 shooting to give the Fever a 52-38 lead.

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Mitchell has scored a total of 105 points in Indiana’s last four games, tying the record she set last year for most points in a four-game series in Fever history.

During halftime, the gold medal team from the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta was honored.

This report used information from The Associated Press.