Indiana Fever 97, Chicago Sky 77 | September 5, 2025 | Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis
The Chicago Sky vs Indiana Fever match player stats from September 5, 2025 tell a story that goes way beyond the final score. Kelsey Mitchell dropped 20 points with 8 assists, Natasha Howard was nearly unstoppable going 7-for-8 from the field with 4 steals, and the Fever rolled to a 97-77 win that felt even more dominant than the margin suggests. And all of this happened without Caitlin Clark, who was officially ruled out for the remainder of the 2025 season just one day before tip-off.
Table of Contents
The Storyline Before Tip-Off
The day before this game, Indiana Fever announced that Caitlin Clark would not return in 2025. A right groin injury suffered on July 15 against the Connecticut Sun ended her sophomore campaign at just 13 games. Clark took to social media to address her situation directly.
“I had hoped to share a better update, but I will not be returning to play this season. I spent hours in the gym every day with the singular goal of getting back out there, disappointed isn’t a big enough word to describe how I am feeling.” — Caitlin Clark
On the other side, Angel Reese, the Sky’s leading rebounder and arguably the team’s most important player, was out too. She picked up her eighth technical foul in her previous game, triggering an automatic one-game suspension. Chicago then added a half-game team suspension on top of that after Reese made public comments indicating she was open to leaving if the team did not start winning.
Two marquee players. Both out. That backdrop made this one of the more compelling regular-season matchups of the late-2025 WNBA stretch.
Final Score and Quarter-by-Quarter Breakdown
Quarter | Indiana Fever | Chicago Sky |
|---|---|---|
Q1 | 31 | 15 |
Q2 | 25 | 26 |
Q3 | 22 | 19 |
Q4 | 19 | 17 |
Final | 97 | 77 |
Indiana basically won the game in the first 10 minutes. A 31-15 opening quarter with 10 assists on 10-for-14 shooting set the tone immediately. Chicago clawed back slightly in Q2, but the gap was already too wide. The Fever’s biggest lead reached 21 points, and they held it comfortably from there.
Indiana Fever Player Stats
Starters
Player | POS | PTS | REB | AST | STL | FG% | TO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kelsey Mitchell | G | 20 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 46.2% | 1 |
Natasha Howard | F | 18 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 87.5% | 1 |
Aliyah Boston | C | 11 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 62.5% | 1 |
Aerial Powers | G | 10 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 44.4% | 0 |
Natasha Howard | F | 18 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 87.5% | 1 |
Full Roster Stats
Player | POS | PTS | REB | AST | STL | FG% | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kelsey Mitchell | G | 20 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 46.2% | +16 |
Natasha Howard | F | 18 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 87.5% | +14 |
Odyssey Sims | G | 13 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 55.6% | +1 |
Aliyah Boston | C | 11 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 62.5% | +9 |
Aerial Powers | G | 10 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 44.4% | +20 |
Lexie Hull | F | 9 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 44.4% | +12 |
Damiris Dantas | C-F | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 33.3% | +11 |
Makayla Timpson | F-C | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 66.7% | +3 |
Shey Peddy | G | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 50.0% | +8 |
Fever Shooting Splits
Category | Made | Attempted | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
Field Goals | 38 | 73 | 52.1% |
3-Pointers | 6 | 23 | 26.1% |
2-Pointers | 32 | 50 | 64.0% |
Free Throws | 15 | 19 | 78.9% |
At the Rim | 12 | 15 | 80.0% |
Advanced Fever Team Stats
Stat | Value |
|---|---|
Points in the Paint | 50 |
Points off Turnovers | 28 |
Bench Points | 26 |
Assists | 27 |
Steals | 9 |
Biggest Lead | 21 |
Offensive Rating | 116.4 |
Effective FG% | 56.2% |
True Shooting% | 59.6% |
Chicago Sky Player Stats
Full Roster Stats
Player | POS | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | FG% | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Kamilla Cardoso | C | 18 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 66.7% | -11 |
Michaela Onyenwere | F | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 75.0% | -11 |
Elizabeth Williams | C-F | 13 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 80.0% | -18 |
Ariel Atkins | G | 10 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 50.0% | -15 |
Maddy Westbeld | F | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 60.0% | -11 |
Sevgi Uzun | G | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 50.0% | -6 |
Kia Nurse | G | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | -7 |
Rebecca Allen | F-G | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 25.0% | -5 |
Rachel Banham | G | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% | -16 |
Sky Shooting Splits
Category | Made | Attempted | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|
Field Goals | 25 | 48 | 52.1% |
3-Pointers | 2 | 11 | 18.2% |
2-Pointers | 23 | 37 | 62.2% |
Free Throws | 25 | 33 | 75.8% |
At the Rim | 5 | 8 | 62.5% |
Advanced Sky Team Stats
Stat | Value |
|---|---|
Turnovers | 24 |
Points Given Off Turnovers | 28 |
Points in the Paint | 36 |
Bench Points | 24 |
Assists | 18 |
Assists-to-Turnover Ratio | 0.78 |
Offensive Rating | 96.8 |
Effective FG% | 54.2% |
Second Chance Points | 4 |
Fast Break Points | 2 |
Head-to-Head Team Comparison
Category | Indiana Fever | Chicago Sky |
|---|---|---|
Final Score | 97 | 77 |
FG% | 52.1% | 52.1% |
3P% | 26.1% | 18.2% |
FT% | 78.9% | 75.8% |
Total Rebounds | 28 | 42 |
Assists | 27 | 18 |
Turnovers | 10 | 24 |
Steals | 9 | 2 |
Blocks | 0 | 4 |
Points in Paint | 50 | 36 |
Points off TOs | 28 | 10 |
Bench Points | 26 | 24 |
Biggest Lead | +21 | +2 |
Both teams shot exactly 52.1% from the field. That single stat tells you everything about where this game was actually decided. It was not the shooting. It was not the rebounding either since Chicago actually pulled down 14 more rebounds. It was the turnovers. The Sky coughed it up 24 times. Indiana turned those into 28 points. Game over.
Breaking Down What Actually Happened
Kelsey Mitchell Carried the Offense
Without Clark, someone had to step up and own this game for Indiana. Mitchell was that player. 20 points, 8 assists, 2 three-pointers, perfect 6-for-6 at the free throw line, and a game-high plus-minus of +16 among starters. She pushed pace, found cutters, and hit enough outside shots to keep the Sky defense honest all night.
Her 8:1 assist-to-turnover ratio was exceptional. Mitchell committed just one turnover across the entire game while directing Indiana’s offense with real authority.
Natasha Howard Was Dominant
If Mitchell ran the show, Howard wrecked the paint. She finished 7-for-8 from the floor (87.5%), scored 18 points, grabbed 7 rebounds, came up with 4 steals, and went 100% on all three second-chance opportunities. Her true shooting percentage landed at 88.2% for the night.
Howard’s points-in-paint numbers were equally sharp. She converted all 7 of her attempts inside and generated 6 second-chance points off offensive rebounds. That level of interior efficiency is rare in any game.
The First Quarter Set Everything
Indiana’s 31-15 opening quarter was the decisive stretch. The Fever opened that frame going 10-for-14 from the floor with 10 assists. They were sharing the ball at a clip that Chicago simply could not match. By the time the Sky settled in during Q2, the damage was already done. Chicago actually outscored Indiana 26-25 in the second quarter, but you cannot spot a team 16 points in the opening frame and expect to recover.
Chicago’s Turnover Problem
24 turnovers in a WNBA game is a significant number. For context, Indiana only turned it over 10 times. The Fever converted Chicago’s miscues into 28 points directly. The Sky’s assist-to-turnover ratio of 0.78 compared to Indiana’s 3.0 basically sums up why the score looked the way it did.
Ariel Atkins finished with 5 turnovers alone. Kamilla Cardoso contributed 5 as well. The ball handling and decision-making in transition killed Chicago repeatedly.
Chicago Sky Top Performers
Cardoso and Onyenwere both posted 18 points, which on most nights would be strong outputs. Cardoso also grabbed 9 rebounds, dished 5 assists, and blocked 2 shots. Elizabeth Williams recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds while shooting 80% from the field. The Sky’s individual numbers were not catastrophic. The team defense and turnover numbers are what sank them.
Season Context and Playoff Picture
Going into this game, Indiana held a 21-20 record while Chicago was sitting at 10-30. This was the fifth and final meeting between these two teams in the 2025 regular season.
Indiana won all five matchups in 2025 by an average of 24 points. That kind of series dominance is hard to overstate. The Fever entered this game needing wins to protect their playoff position, sitting 2.5 games ahead of Los Angeles for the final postseason spot.
With three games remaining in the regular season, this win was critical for Indiana’s playoff push. Chicago, meanwhile, was effectively eliminated from contention and finishing out the year with a rebuilding roster in a difficult spot.
Caitlin Clark’s Season-Ending Injury: What It Meant
Clark’s groin injury changed the entire narrative of Indiana’s 2025 season. She averaged 16.5 points, 5 rebounds, 8.8 assists, and 1.6 steals across her 13 regular-season appearances before going down. Without her, the Fever had to redistribute playmaking responsibilities across Mitchell, Boston, and the supporting cast.
The fact that Indiana still managed to go 5-0 against Chicago and stay in playoff contention without Clark for most of the second half of the season speaks to the depth head coach Stephanie White built around her.
Post-Game Perspective
The Fever coaching staff had to feel good about this one. With their franchise player sidelined, their next stars responded. Mitchell and Howard provided the kind of combined 38-point, 9-steal, 12-assist effort that proves Indiana’s supporting cast is not just functional but genuinely dangerous when asked to carry the load.
For the Sky, this loss extended one of the roughest seasons in recent franchise history. The Angel Reese situation, specifically her public comments about potentially wanting out, and the team suspension that followed added an uncomfortable dimension to an already difficult stretch run.
Final Numbers at a Glance
Category | Winner | Value |
|---|---|---|
Top Scorer | Kelsey Mitchell (IND) | 20 PTS |
Best FG% | Natasha Howard (IND) | 87.5% |
Most Rebounds | Elizabeth Williams (CHI) | 11 |
Most Assists | Kelsey Mitchell (IND) | 8 |
Most Steals | Natasha Howard (IND) | 4 |
Most Blocks | Kamilla Cardoso (CHI) | 2 |
Biggest +/- | Aerial Powers (IND) | +20 |
Worst +/- | Elizabeth Williams (CHI) | -18 |
Where to Follow WNBA Stats and Analysis
For deeper WNBA coverage, game logs, box scores, and ongoing league standings, ESPN’s WNBA hub and CBS Sports’ game tracker remain the go-to sources for real-time data. For analysis that goes beyond the box score, the WNBA’s official stats page provides advanced metrics including offensive and defensive ratings across the league.
For more in-depth sports breakdowns, player performance analysis, and game coverage across multiple leagues, you can check out Top Hill Sports for ongoing content.
Final Thoughts
The Indiana Fever beat the Chicago Sky 97-77 on September 5, 2025 in a game decided not by shooting efficiency but by ball security, paint dominance, and a 31-15 first quarter that buried Chicago before the game really began. Kelsey Mitchell and Natasha Howard carried the Fever without their star. The Sky, missing Angel Reese and dealing with real internal turbulence, could not survive 24 turnovers.
If you were searching for the complete Chicago Sky vs Indiana Fever match player stats from this date, the Fever were simply the sharper, hungrier team on the night that mattered most in their playoff push.
