Fever’s Late Rally Not Enough In Minnesota

STAR OF THE GAME TAMIKA WHITMORE Whitmore scored in double figures for the sixth game in a row, leading the Fever in scoring with a season-high 26 points on 11-of-19 shooting. She also added six rebounds and three assists before fouling out late in the game. UNSUNG HERO LA’TANGELA ATKINSON Atkinson, making her first WNBA start, scored a career-high 15 points shooting 6-of-8 from the field. Atkinson scored eight first quarter points. She also contributed three rebounds and four assists in the game. QUOTABLE BRIAN WINTERS In general: “We played hard right to the end. We’re a little beat up right now, with Catchings out and Tan White hurting. I thought we played very well, except for a couple of defensive breakdowns in the fourth quarter.” On Tamika Whitmore and a great game: “Whit had a great game. I thought she was terrific. We out-rebounded them, we pressured them and we shot the ball well. I couldn’t ask for any more from my players. We just lost a great game and Minnesota outperformed us in the end.” HIDDEN NUMBERS Points in the paint: Fever 40, Lynx 36 Second-chance points: Fever 8, Lynx 11 Fast-break points: Fever 10, Lynx 10 Points off turnovers: Fever 17, Lynx 27 Starters scoring: Fever 83, Lynx 72 Bench scoring: Fever 5, Lynx 20

GAME REPORT
	Lynx 92, Fever 87
June 2, 2006 at the Target Center (Minneapolis, MN) Box Score | WNBA Recap

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – The Fever had all five starters score in double figures Friday night in Minnesota, but it wasn’t enough as Indiana dropped its second consecutive game in a 92-87 decision to the Minnesota Lynx in the Target Center.

Indiana went on a 10-3 run in the final two minutes to cut what had been a double-digit lead down to three with 11 seconds left in the game and had a chance to tie on its final possesion. The Fever had two three-point attempts in the closing seconds, however both were off the mark as the Fever dropped to 4-2 on the season.

Tamika Whitmore scored in double figures for the sixth consecutive game in leading Indiana with a season-high 26 points on 11-of-19 shooting. She also had six rebounds and three assists. The Fever also got season-highs from Anna DeForge (18), rookie La’Tangela Atkinson (15) and Tully Bevilaqua (11). Ebony Hoffman scored 12 for Indiana and paced the Fever with nine rebounds.

Minnesota’s Seimone Augustus and Amber Jacobs both finished with season-highs scoring 31 and 16, respectively. Minnesota, after scoring a WNBA record 114 points on Wednesday, won its second straight while the Fever lost its second straight on the road.

The first quarter saw a string of runs by both teams. The Lynx jumped out to an early 8-2 lead, similar to what the Comets did against the Fever on Wednesday. This time, however, the Fever responded by going on an 11-2 run, including seven unanswered, to take a 13-10 lead midway through the opening quarter. Minnesota would then go on a run its own, outscoring the Fever 13-4 to closing minutes of the quarter to lead by six at 25-19. Atkinson scored eight first quarter points for the Fever.

A 3-point play the old fashion way converted by Whitmore late in the second quarter gave the Fever its biggest lead of the half, 41-35. Whitmore had a very productive first half for the second game in a row, netting 16, including 11 in the second quarter alone. All five Fever starters scored in the first half, and as a team Indiana shot 53 percent from the field, hitting on 18 of its 34 shot attempts.

The Fever went on an 8-2 run in the opening minutes of the third quarter on the strength of back-to-back 3’s from Bevilaqua and DeForge to capture its largest lead of the game at nine, 51-42. Trailing 59-56 late in the third, Minnesota would go on a 13-4 run to take a 69-62 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Indiana cut Minnesota’s lead down to three late in the fourth, however Svetlana Abrosimova knocked down a pair of 3’s to extend the Lynx lead to seven points with 3:48 remaining. Minnesota would go on to lead by as many as ten down the stretch before Indiana's late surge. .