The Indiana Fever closed the regular season with an 86-66 loss to the Minnesota Lynx on Thursday night, dropping to the No. 6 seed in the WNBA playoffs.
Aliyah Boston left in the second quarter after a flare-up of a lower right leg injury and did not return. Guard Tyasha Harris later exited with a left ankle injury after an awkward landing.
Caitlin Clark scored two points on 1-for-12 shooting in 18 minutes, her lowest scoring output of the season. Kelsey Mitchell led Indiana with 10 points, ending her league-record streak of 27 consecutive games with at least 20 points.
Minnesota jumped out to a 25-4 lead late in the first quarter and led by as many as 36 points. The Lynx finished the regular season 33-11 and earned the No. 1 seed.
The Fever finished 28-16. They will open the first round on the road Sunday against the No. 3 Las Vegas Aces.
Boston played 13 minutes and scored four points before the injury. Coach Stephanie White said the team held her out of the second half as a precaution. The same right-leg issue had surfaced earlier in the year, including during Boston’s time in the Unrivaled league.
Harris was carried off the court after the fall in the third quarter. White described it as an awkward landing and said she had no immediate update on the veteran’s status.
Clark addressed the losses and the injuries afterward.
“At this point, everybody’s record is 0-0,” she said. “You’re going into the playoffs. If we sit and sulk about what happened tonight, yeah, it sucks. It is what it is. We kind of came out and got punched in the mouth. We didn’t make shots.”
The Fever had won eight of 10 games before stumbling in the final stretch. A loss to Washington four days earlier cost them a chance at the No. 5 seed.
Clark averaged 22.8 points, 8.5 assists and 3.9 rebounds during the regular season. She shot 45.3 percent from the field and 36.9 percent from three-point range.
Boston averaged 16.4 points and 8.1 rebounds. She has been a consistent interior presence since entering the league in 2023.
The Lynx played without point guard Olivia Miles, who sat a second straight game with a left calf injury. Kayla McBride scored 22 points, including six three-pointers. Natasha Howard added 21 points.
White said Minnesota dictated both ends of the floor from the opening minutes. The Fever managed only 66 points, their lowest total of the season.
Clark said the group must shift focus quickly.
“Obviously, had two players go down,” she continued. “This was a pretty crappy night overall. I think for us, you’ve got to do it for the people around you. You’ve got to buy in, and I’m excited. If you can’t get up for the playoffs, then you probably shouldn’t be on this team.
“I think that’s the great thing when you look at one through eight in this league right now. It’s anybody’s to take. For us, we have to have the mentality going into the playoffs of, ‘Let’s go steal the first one,’ one game at a time. We have three days to prep and get ready, and I think just turn our focus to that.”
Indiana split the season series with Las Vegas. The Aces finished 31-13.
The Fever have reached the playoffs in each of the past three seasons but have not advanced past the first round in that span. Health will be a central question heading into Sunday.
Boston’s availability remains uncertain. Harris’s ankle injury also needs evaluation before the series begins.
Minnesota will host the New York Liberty in a rematch of the 2024 WNBA Finals.
The regular season ended with a reminder of how quickly circumstances can change. The Fever now have three days to regroup before the postseason starts.
