Seattle Storm vs. Indiana Fever Prediction, Preview and Odds - 6/17/21
It’s an interconference matchup on the WNBA hardwood in the Hoosier State. The Seattle Storm are on the road as they make the trip to face the Indiana Fever Thursday night in the second game of a two-game series. On Tuesday night, it was the Storm rolling to an easy 87-70 victory in the opening game of this set to ensure no worse than a split. That marked Seattle’s third straight win in the series and they have taken eight of the last 11 meetings, including a pair this year. Will the Storm continue to roll or can the Fever break through and pick up a victory in the finale of the two-game series?
Seattle Storm Looking to Keep Rolling
Seattle ran their win streak to four games and won for the 10th time in 11 games as they dispatched the lowly Fever on the road Tuesday night. The Storm ran their record to 11-2 on the year and they entered Wednesday with a 1.5-game lead over the Aces for the top seed in the WNBA playoff picture. Seattle used a 10-0 run in the first quarter to take a 19-11 lead and didn’t let the Fever closer than five the rest of the way. The Storm led by nine after the opening quarter, by eight at the half and used an 11-0 fourth quarter run to put the game away. Seattle shot 49.3% from the field, including eight of 22 from three-point range, and won the rebounding battle 38-32. Breanna Stewart led the Storm with 20 points, 12 rebounds and five assists in the win.
The Storm comes into this contest second in the league in scoring offense with an average of 88.9 points per game. Seattle is fourth in rebounding (36.4 boards per contest) and is first in the league in assists by dishing out 23.2 dimes per night this year. The Storm are 5th in scoring defense as they allow 79.8 points a game so far this year. Breanna Stewart leads the team with 21.2 points and 9.8 rebounds per contest. Jewell Loyd (19.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists) and Sue Bird (11.3 points, 5.9 assists) are solid secondary options. Coach Noelle Quinn has a solid group to work with as her team can get production from Katie Lou Samuelson, Jordin Canada, Candice Dupree, Ezi Magbegor, Stephanie Talbot, Kennedy Burke, Epiphanny Prince and Kiana Williams. The Storm are second in the league in field goal percentage as they convert 46.6% of their shots from the floor this year. Seattle is second in the league in three-point field goals made per game (9.5) and first in three-point percentage as they knock down 40.5% percent from beyond the arc. The Storm are average at the line, ranking fifth in the league by converting 81.5% of their chances. Mikiah Herbert Harrington is out for the year as she is pregnant.
Indiana Fever Still Trying to Find Elusive Second Win
Indiana hung around for a while but inevitably succumbed to the defending champion Storm, suffering their eighth straight loss in the process. The Fever dropped to 1-12 on the season and are in the basement of the WNBA, five games behind the Sparks for the final playoff spot. Indiana held a two-point lead in the opening quarter before giving up a 10-0 run to trail by eight. The Fever were down nine after the opening quarter and couldn’t draw closer than five after that. Indiana was still within nine in the fourth quarter before getting buried with an 11-0 run to put things out of reach. The Fever shot 42.2% from the field, including three of 17 from three-point range, and missed 11 of their 24 free throw attempts. Kelsey Mitchell led Indiana with 26 points and four assists in the loss.
The Fever comes into this game 11th in the league in scoring offense with 74.8 points per game. Indiana is eighth in the league in rebounding (35 boards per contest) and is 11th in the league in assists with an average of 17.7 dimes per game. The Fever are 12th in the league in scoring defense by allowing 89.1 points a night. Kelsey Mitchell is one of three players for the Fever averaging in double figures with 15.9 points a night. Teaira McCowan (10.9 points, 8.9 rebounds, 1.3 blocks) and Danielle Robinson (8.3 points, 3.3 assists) are good secondary options. Tiffany Mitchell (10.8 points), Jantel Lavender, Bernadett Hatar, Victoria Vivians, Jessica Breland, Lindsey Allen, Kysre Gondrezick and Chelsey Perry are looked at to contribute for coach Pokey Chatman. Indiana is 9th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 41% as a team on the year. The Fever are tied for 11th in threes per game (4.6) while standing 12th by hitting 27% of their long-range attempts. Indiana is 10th in free throw shooting as they sink 76.3% of their chances at the stripe this season. Hatar missed the last 10 games with an ankle injury and is questionable here.
Pick: Seattle Storm
We’ve already seen Seattle dispatch Indiana twice, winning by 15 and 17 points in those contests. The Storm lead the league with their 11-2 mark and they have the league’s second-best scoring offense on the year. Meanwhile, the Fever are in the basement while ranking last in scoring defense, field goal percentage defense (47.6%) and three-point field goal percentage defense (44%) on the season. Indiana is 1-5 at home and have been outscored by an average of 6.2 points per game on the year. Meanwhile, Seattle has won six straight on the road, outscoring the opposition by an average of 15 points per game. The Storm wins this one convincingly to sweep the two-game set and beat the Fever for the third time this year.
Total: Under
Despite this being a matchup of the second-best scoring offense against the league’s worst scoring defense, that doesn’t automatically translate to a barnburner. Both meetings between these teams have fallen well short of the mark as the Storm’s home win on June 1 fell nine points shy while Tuesday’s contest fell 9.5 points below the total. Seattle has seen the over hit in six of their 13 games but seven of their last eight games have fallen short of the total after they went over in each of their first five games. Indiana has seen the over hit in seven of their 13 games but they don’t do enough offensively to carry their part of the load. This one falls short for the third time this season.
