The Indiana Fever walked into their game against the Las Vegas Aces with their backs against the wall. The Aces were riding on a three-game win streak, and the Fever? They had just dropped two straight. Add in the blow of Caitlin Clark for another game, and it looked like a long night for the Fever. But to their credit, the Fever didn’t back down. They dug deep and pulled off a much-needed win. Now, you would assume Coach White would be proud of that result. But, well, she had her complaints. Because, as it turns out, plenty to celebrate for Caitlin Clark and co, but still a few red flags to fix.

The Fever clawed their way back from an 8-point deficit to take down the Aces, but it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing. There are still a few things that need cleaning up. What are those? Well, the Fever gave up 16 points off turnovers and allowed 38 points in the paint. Far from ideal. So, naturally, Coach Stephanie White wasn’t thrilled, especially considering her team went into halftime trailing 41-35. Perhaps, it also took her back to the preseason, when she had criticized Indiana’s first-half, turnovers-marred (10) showing against the Atlanta Dream – even though the Fever ended up winning that game too.

Everyone knows that if the team wants to make some real playoff noise, it starts with limiting turnovers, enhancing their free throw percentage, and overall defensive efforts. However, we are past the midseason point and not a lot has improved. In the postgame press conference, White, once again, made it more than clear she wasn’t happy with her team’s first-half performance. Being down 6 points is one thing, but letting the Aces go on a 12-2 run to end the half? Yeah, that didn’t sit well with the Fever head coach.

She said, “Yeah, they did. In the second half, I didn’t feel like we did that in the first half, to end quarters in particular. But our defense can’t be dictated by our offense. It has to be the other way around. We had some lapses in the first quarter, we had some lapses into the second, and we can’t have those. We’ve got to maintain elite execution on both ends.”

The Fever had let the Aces outscore them in the second quarter 23-17. They committed 11 turnovers and 8 fouls in the first half, which would obviously make no coach happy. Add to that how the Aces dominated the paint, scoring 22 points, which was 8 more than the Fever. Thankfully, Coach Stephanie White let her frustrations be known to her team during the halftime break. That pep talk turned out to be a good thing in the end, as even Natasha Howard acknowledged its impact!

“Coach told us at halftime that we were playing too soft. We let Las Vegas get whatever they wanted in the second quarter,” she said. The Fever came out all guns blazing, finishing the third quarter with 27 points, and Howard scored 11 of those. They would also go on to turn the ball over only three times and concede just 3 points off of them.

That said, the Fever are still holding out hope for Caitlin Clark’s return. She’s already missed over 10 games this season, and let’s be honest, they would much rather have her running the offense than cheering from the bench. So what’s the latest update? Unfortunately, it’s not the one fans were hoping for.

The Indiana Fever provides Caitlin Clark’s injury update

“This is the first time I haven’t felt like a young body that can run around and sprint every day and just continue to do that,” Caitlin Clark said ahead of the All-Star game when she was asked about her battles with injuries. “Being a professional athlete, you really have to take care of both your body and your mind — it’s been a journey learning about that.”

Caitlin Clark has already dealt with three injuries this season, and this one might just be the most serious yet. In the recent update released by the franchise, Clark’s latest evaluations didn’t reveal any significant damage, and she is currently working with the Fever medical team on her recovery and rehabilitation, with the priority on her long-term health and well-being. While this might definitely sound like good news to you, the franchise has also mentioned the fact that there’s still no set timeline for her return.

This does suggest that Clark will miss quite a few games, and this is something Rachel DeMita predicted as well. But the good thing is that the organization is fully committed to getting their talisman fit for the long run instead of focusing on short-term gain. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments down below!