Aliyah Boston’s masterful performance leads Fever to 34-point rout of Aces
Boston delivered 19 points and 11 rebounds, Kelsey Mitchell scored 27, and Sophie Cunningham sank six 3s as Indiana completed a 3-1 road trip with its most complete performance of the season.
LAS VEGAS — Aliyah Boston won the tip, opened the game with a floater, and delivered a masterful performance as the Indiana Fever captured a 109-75 wire-to-wire win, their second in eight days against the 2025 WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces.
It was just one week ago, over at nearby T-Mobile Arena, that the Fever held the Aces to a season-low 68 points in a 16-point road win to begin the trip. This time, they ended the trip with their most complete performance of the season — a 34-point crushing blow — in front of a sellout crowd of 10,513 at Michelob Ultra Arena on Sunday evening to end the
And this time, Caitlin Clark and A’ja Wilson played in a featured matchup that aired nationally on NBC. The reigning Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week both sat out the previous meeting due to injuries.
Clark, who also sat out the game in Phoenix on the second night of a back-to-back, remains on a minutes restriction — about 25 minutes — but says she feels great. The Fever played her in stints of about five and a half minutes, much better than the short bursts in LA. She made her feelings about minutes restrictions clear last year, but her opinion has evolved, and she understands the importance of keeping the bigger picture in mind.
After a rebound from Boston, Clark drained a 3-pointer from 28 feet, and just like that, the Fever led 5-0.
They never trailed.
They took a 59-48 lead into halftime, getting 20 of Kelsey Mitchell’s game-high 27 points before the break. Then the Fever avoided blowing another double-digit lead.
Note: Mitchell has an efficient night in her first return to the arena where her body gave out in Game 5 of the playoff semifinals last fall.
The Aces were playing on a back-to-back, but they had blown out the Mercury by 48 points the night before, and it was a home-to-home back-to-back, which is much easier on their bodies. The Fever still had to play with energy, get stops, and keep pushing the pace.
Las Vegas answered with a 7-0 burst out of the locker room, leading head coach Stephanie White to call a timeout after just 83 seconds. She was fiery in the huddle. The Fever had lost their edge and given up second-chance opportunities.
After the Aces pulled within four, 63-59, the Fever restored order and took over.
Then they cruised to victory.
They used a 23-5 run bridging the third and fourth quarters to regain full control of the game, and the Aces never threatened again.
“I thought our team was tough-minded,” White said postgame. " We withstood that run in the third quarter. We locked down defensively after that. We came into the half, they were shooting almost 52% from the floor. They ended the game with 39%.
“We’re building consistency to these types of efforts. Now, we’re not always gonna shoot the ball the way that we did, but I thought we found the best shot on the floor. And when you do that, your percentages are gonna be higher. So just really proud of this group and how connected we continue to grow into.”
Their play matched the vision for this team: strong performances from their big three, complemented by a role player stepping up.
In this case, it was Sophie Cunningham. One night after serving as a ring girl at a UFC Fight Night event, the potential Sixth Woman of the Year candidate caught fire from deep. She made 6 of 7 from 3-point range, while the Aces finished 4 of 17. As a team, the Fever were plus-33 from beyond the arc.
“I think that’s what it is to be a pro, is to stay ready,” Cunningham said after her second-highest point total of the season. “When you have megastars on your team, they’re gonna get the majority of the shots, as they should. And so as others, we just gotta be prepared to knock it down when we get the ball.”
Near my media seat, I saw a mother and daughter both wearing a navy t-shirt that read, “Sophie Cunningham Mentality!”
First, though, Boston set the tone inside. She maneuvered smoothly, comfortably, and decisively, finishing with 19 points and 11 rebounds in 29 minutes.
Indiana’s 3s were falling, and at that point, it was pick your poison for the opposing team.
“I think we let our defense spark our offense and then offensively, I mean, we moved the ball, we kept it popping,” said Boston. “I think that’s really just been a focus for us, is just getting the ball reversed, and then it’s gonna find who should shoot it, and I think we did a better job today.”
This is the way.
And to think, Clark didn’t even have one of those massive performances. Of Indiana’s 15 3-pointers, she contributed one. As we know, there’s a lot more where that came from.
The Fever improved to 14-9 on the season, punctuating the four-game road trip with a 3-1 record. Even more, they’ve won four of their last five games.
Sunday’s win over the Aces also marked the start of the second half of the season. They’re not content. White said they would like to be further along in terms of their record, and that their biggest challenge continues to be consistency.
For 40 minutes. From everyone. For the remaining games.
The Fever gave the sellout crowd, along with millions more watching at home, a performance to enjoy. They shot 56% from the field while holding the Aces to 39%. They scored more points in the paint and from beyond the arc. They committed fewer turnovers — just 10 — and still have room for growth.
They have momentum and want to carry it into their next four games leading into All-Star Weekend.
“It’s that defensive intensity, getting stops, letting that fuel our offense,” Boston added. “We wanna play fast, we wanna get the ball up, we wanna get quick 3s and transition. So for us, just make sure we lock in.
“I know we have the Valks next. And so for us, they like to play fast, they like to defend. So once again, making sure that we make them have to guard both sides and not just one.”
Other Notes
The Fever led 31-22 after 1, getting 10 points early from reserves.
Myisha Hines-Allen did not play for the first time this season. White said she was dealing with “a family thing.”
Mitchell has poured in at least 20 points in seven straight games. She ranks third in the league in scoring behind A’ja Wilson and Kelsey Plum.
Boston on Mitchell: “I think Kelsey’s awesome. She shows up every single day and she gives us everything she has. And I think just how long she’s been wearing a Fever jersey, I mean, you can see it. She continues to show up every single day. She hoops out of her mind. She is the fastest guard I’ve ever seen in my life. And so for her to continue to do that and make teams guard her, I mean, she deserves a world title.”
The last line stood out to me, especially. They want her to be part of a championship.
One day after Fever draft pick Justine Pissott made her WNBA debut, finishing with 19 points (on 7-of-8 shooting) in 10 minutes, she finished with two points in 14 minutes against her former team. The Aces signed her off a Fever development contract.
Dana Evans made her season debut for the Aces.
In the stands: Taelon Peter and Jalen Slawson of the Pacers, former Pacer Kendall Brown, several Pacers business executives, Hall of Famers Lisa Leslie and Dawn Staley, Aces owner Mark Davis, Mike Tyson, and UFC President and CEO Dana White.