Rookie Aliyah Boston notched a double-double of 23 points and 14 rebounds and Kelsey Mitchell followed with 19 points to lift the Indiana Fever to an 87-66 victory against the Washington Mystics on Tuesday in Indianapolis.
After losing five of six to open the season, the Fever have won two of three. Indiana (3-6) shot 47.1 percent from the floor compared to 33.3 percent for the Mystics.
Queen Egbo grabbed 10 rebounds to go with six points off the bench for the Fever, helping the hosts to a 46-27 advantage on the glass.
Elena Delle Donne paced Washington (5-4) with 17 points and was the team’s lone scorer in double figures as the Mystics were unable to stretch their winning streak to three games.
Delle Donne and Brittney Sykes tied for the team lead with six rebounds. Sykes was Washington’s second-leading scorer with nine points.
Boston, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft out of South Carolina, was coming off a career-low scoring output of four points in Sunday’s 85-82 loss to Phoenix. She now has scored in double figures in seven of her nine career games.
Boston has three double-doubles in her past four contests.
Mitchell passed Katie Douglas and moved into second place all-time on Indiana’s career scoring list with a layup that beat the first-quarter buzzer.
Lexie Hull, NaLyssa Smith and Kristy Wallace scored eight points apiece for the Fever.
The second quarter transformed into a game of runs, with Indiana gaining momentum to build on its two-point edge after the first 10 minutes. The Fever thrived behind Boston, who showed little reluctance in moving through the paint, including two straight possessions in which she fought through challenges from Washington’s Shakira Austin on the way to a layup.
A 17-5 Fever run pushed the hosts’ advantage to nine points, but Washington responded with a 9-3 run to pull within 41-38 at halftime. Delle Donne, Li Meng and Kristi Toliver scored six points apiece to boost the Mystics, while Boston paced the Fever with nine points and six rebounds.
The Fever led 61-53 after three quarters and dominated the fourth, doubling up the Mystics 26-13 in the period.
–Field Level Media
