Angel Reese doesn’t back down. Thursday night in Indianapolis, she and the Atlanta Dream made sure Caitlin Clark’s signature shoe launch ended with a loss instead of a celebration. The Dream beat the Fever 108-101 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, snapping Indiana’s four-game winning streak and pushing Atlanta to 10-4 on the season.
Reese finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds, another double-double for the league leader in boards. But it wasn’t clean. She picked up four fouls in the first half and had to play through a physical Fever front line that kept coming at her. She shot 8-of-14 from the floor and never stopped moving.
After the game, Reese talked about how the team held it together when things got choppy. She told Andscape’s Wilton Jackson II that the group focused on valuing possessions and managing emotions before the game. “I think we did a good job of that in fighting through each quarter,” she said. “It was back and forth, back and forth, and we finally got the last punch, and just being able to maintain the composure of all of us, even when the game isn’t going our way, and even when we had great stretches.”
A fourth-quarter fight that almost slipped away
Indiana didn’t go quietly. The Fever opened the fourth quarter with a 9-0 run that tied the game at 93-93. It looked like the momentum had shifted. But Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard answered with back-to-back buckets in the final 1:30, quieting the home crowd and sealing the win. Howard finished with 16 points, five rebounds, six assists, and two steals. Jordin Canada added 18 points, five assists, and four steals.
The Dream shot 54% from the field and dominated in transition, outscoring Indiana 17-8 on fast-break points. That’s where Reese thrives — running the floor, crashing the glass, making the Fever work for everything. She leads the league in rebounds for a reason.
What this win means for Atlanta
The Dream improved to 6-2 on the road, which is no small thing in a league where home court usually matters. They’ve now beaten a Fever team that had been rolling, and they did it on a night when all the attention was on Clark’s new shoe. That’s the kind of win that builds real confidence. These two teams meet again Saturday at Gateway Center Arena. If Thursday was any indicator, the rematch will be just as physical.
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