Latest / The Central Indiana Sports Report / Fever 102, Wings 83: Recap + Reaction with John & Michelle (Podcast No. 324.3)

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Fever 102, Wings 83: Recap + Reaction with John & Michelle (Podcast No. 324.3) · The Central Indiana Sports Report

0:00
[SPEAKER_00]: What you are listening to now is the Central Indiana Sports Report podcast number three hundred and twenty four point three.
0:09
[SPEAKER_00]: Our recap and John Robertson and Michelle Garmin's reaction to the fever's one hundred and two to eighty three butt kicking of the Dallas wings on Sunday afternoon.
0:23
[SPEAKER_01]: You're listening to the central Indiana Sports Report with your host, Greg Mangal.
0:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Good morning, good afternoon, or good evening, fever fans, and welcome to the central Indiana Sports Report.
0:37
[SPEAKER_00]: Today is Sunday, July, thirteen, twenty, twenty, five, and I am your host, Greg Mangal.
0:43
[SPEAKER_00]: Podcasting today from headquarters in Jeffersonville.
0:46
[SPEAKER_00]: Produce your season is in the control room.
0:51
[SPEAKER_00]: currently eating a condike bar rather than working, but that's okay.
0:56
[SPEAKER_00]: Coming up, we have a recap of the fever's one-o-two eighty-three win over the Dallas wings followed by John Robertson's and Michelle Garmin's reaction to the big win.
1:10
[SPEAKER_00]: Before we get to that, just want to remind you that we have a fever report every week with John and Michelle, including this week with some special coverage of the All-Star Week in Indianapolis.
1:21
[SPEAKER_00]: John Michelle and I will be there following every single game this year with a recap and reaction through the end of the WNBA finals.
1:30
[SPEAKER_00]: Your fever recap in ten minutes or less begins now.
1:36
[SPEAKER_00]: And this one is gonna be a pretty short one because this one was all fever.
1:41
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, at least the final three quarters.
1:44
[SPEAKER_00]: Starting from early in the second quarter, the fever started to look like the fever team we were expecting at the start of the season in the one hundred and two to eighty three victory over the Dallas wings.
1:58
[SPEAKER_00]: Caitlyn Clark was at her brilliant best, but still struggling to shoot the ball just a little bit.
2:03
[SPEAKER_00]: In her first pro matchup ever against
2:07
[SPEAKER_00]: wings rookie page beckers.
2:09
[SPEAKER_00]: The fever had crisp ball movement and player movement resulting in thirty assists on forty baskets.
2:16
[SPEAKER_00]: They shot fifty two percent from the field sixty three percent from inside the three point arc and went over a hundred points for just the second time this season.
2:26
[SPEAKER_00]: They also scored ninety nine and Fridays blowout win over Atlanta.
2:30
[SPEAKER_00]: In fact, between the second half of Friday's game in the first half of Sundays, the fever scored a hundred and twenty three points at what amounts to a regulation WNBA game.
2:41
[SPEAKER_00]: Indiana Trail to tell Michaela Timson's layup on a beautiful pass from Demaris Dantis with five seconds left in the first quarter that put the fever ahead, twenty eight to twenty seven.
2:53
[SPEAKER_00]: Tierra McCallan's put back to open the second quarter gave the wings a twenty eight twenty seven lead.
2:59
[SPEAKER_00]: And that was the last time they would lead.
3:02
[SPEAKER_00]: The fever outscored Dallas, thirty-three to seven, the rest of the period shooting, seventy-six percent on sixteen of twenty-one shooting, lay up after lay up, brilliant Caitlyn Clark pass after brilliant Caitlyn Clark pass.
3:17
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, and five Clark steals in a block shot.
3:21
[SPEAKER_00]: And a couple of her patented deep three pointers.
3:24
[SPEAKER_00]: Clark was just four of twelve from the field and two of seven from behind the three-point line, but if you did not watch the game, trust us, she was amazing.
3:34
[SPEAKER_00]: Here she is.
3:37
[SPEAKER_06]: Yeah, I mean, I still probably didn't shoot it as good as I would have liked, but I feel like it's kind of just trying to continue to get my legs under me.
3:48
[SPEAKER_06]: I mean, I thought my playmaking was really good.
3:50
[SPEAKER_06]: There was, I mean, no reason for me to really shoot that much.
3:52
[SPEAKER_06]: I thought, like, you look at the box, like, told shout-a-times, told shout-a-times, eleven, nine, nine, eight, seven, six, like, just very balanced.
4:00
[SPEAKER_06]: And, you know, people executed.
4:03
[SPEAKER_06]: When we have you know five people in double figures like I feel like we're going to be pretty hard to be like I would take a lot for a team to beat us and I think we're just kind of firing all cylinders moving the ball well, getting to the next action, played out a pick and roll well and then our defense was was good and got us a lot of buckets and transition.
4:20
[SPEAKER_00]: The fever's sixty-four first half points is a franchise record.
4:25
[SPEAKER_00]: Kelsey Mitchell finished with twenty points and just twenty-six minutes to lead Indiana.
4:30
[SPEAKER_00]: Natasha Howard had eighteen points going eight for nine from the field.
4:34
[SPEAKER_00]: Alia Boston had seventeen points, Clark fourteen and Sophie cutting him thirteen off the bench.
4:39
[SPEAKER_00]: The balance scoring and really balanced everything.
4:43
[SPEAKER_00]: Five different fever players had at least three assists led by Clark's thirteen.
4:48
[SPEAKER_00]: We've also had eleven steals in the win, Clark's five and three a piece from Boston and Mitchell.
4:56
[SPEAKER_00]: Here's a Lea Boston stop on the win.
4:59
[SPEAKER_05]: I see, I think it starts on the defense event.
5:01
[SPEAKER_05]: We talk about that all the time, just making sure that we get stops because we like to play fast.
5:05
[SPEAKER_05]: We like to get the ball up and go in transition and so we knew that we just had to make sure that we were focused on that end and make sure that we're connected on the defensive end and then that sparks our offense and we're going to go.
5:16
[SPEAKER_00]: It was definitely a performance that have fever fans dreaming of a WNBA title.
5:22
[SPEAKER_00]: Please stay tuned for John Robertson and Michelle Garman's thoughts on the fever win.
5:29
[SPEAKER_00]: your list today to the central indiana sports report with your host Greg Mendel welcome fever fans to the central indiana sports report and john Robertson and Michelle garments reaction to the fevers one or two win over the wings
5:47
[SPEAKER_00]: A margin that doesn't even come close to indicating how dominant the Indian fever were.
5:52
[SPEAKER_00]: Second and third quarters just unbelievably good basketball John.
5:57
[SPEAKER_00]: The ball was moving.
5:58
[SPEAKER_00]: Caitlin Clark looked like Caitlin Clark for the first time in a long time and she just controlled the game and it was no contest.
6:06
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it was absolutely not like you saw the kind of showtime fever basketball that we want to see.
6:11
[SPEAKER_02]: It was you know like you said ball moving around to everybody a balanced offensive attack from everyone.
6:17
[SPEAKER_02]: Caitlyn wasn't even really shooting that well from three.
6:20
[SPEAKER_02]: I mean she's just she hit one or two maybe but like she still missed a lot of the long threes but still an outstanding performance.
6:26
[SPEAKER_02]: So like it just goes to show that when they're playing and they're on fire she had thirteen assists and everybody was putting in points.
6:33
[SPEAKER_00]: Michelle, she missed some of those shots that you and I do not like, but she spent most of the game getting into the paint, making brilliant passes.
6:42
[SPEAKER_00]: She's maybe the best passer in the world.
6:44
[SPEAKER_00]: And that includes both genders, by the way.
6:48
[SPEAKER_04]: She facilitates so well.
6:51
[SPEAKER_04]: And like I said, I think right now, she's coming back from injury that her bet the best thing she does for the fever is facilitates.
6:58
[SPEAKER_04]: She picks up the tempo
7:00
[SPEAKER_04]: by facilitating getting those, getting them in fast break fast.
7:04
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, I'm fine with that.
7:06
[SPEAKER_04]: The less she dribbles and around and killing clock and running in, the way they defend her is the safer her body is.
7:13
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, if she could just get it and go and then I, she facilitates so well.
7:18
[SPEAKER_04]: And I will say this, I am so glad to see that this coaching staff is really
7:27
[SPEAKER_04]: made use of, uh, Kelsey Mitchell's quickest.
7:30
[SPEAKER_04]: So she's not just hanging out by the perimeter or chewing her quickness by driving, cutting all the back door baseline cuts from the wing, the back door cuts to the basket.
7:40
[SPEAKER_04]: They're phenomenal.
7:41
[SPEAKER_04]: And not only does Clark find her, but Boston finds her.
7:44
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, I just like that.
7:46
[SPEAKER_04]: They've really taken, they're playing this coaching staff.
7:49
[SPEAKER_04]: And I know I've seen some, they've taken some heat in some of those losses.
7:54
[SPEAKER_04]: from fans that don't really get it, but they've really done a great job of finding these players strength and utilizing and maximizing them.
8:04
[SPEAKER_02]: Before we get too far off that, I do want to say Michelle, you know, Caitlyn did what you, she must have heard your last podcast because she played an excellent defense today to make those passes open, down court.
8:16
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, all defense.
8:17
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes, all defense was very good.
8:19
[SPEAKER_04]: Yes, or all defense was very good.
8:21
[SPEAKER_04]: In fact, I kind of think
8:23
[SPEAKER_04]: that if you want Caitlyn strings as a defender, it is off-ball and it's in some kind of trapping defense where she can be a reader and not have to be a defender.
8:31
[SPEAKER_04]: And if you coach, you'll know what, people will know what I'm talking about when I say a reader.
8:35
[SPEAKER_04]: You put them, they get a read, the passing angle, the lines, and her, she understands the game so well that she's not having to defend somebody.
8:44
[SPEAKER_04]: She's like defending an area and reading, and she's very good at that.
8:48
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, it's like if you
8:50
[SPEAKER_04]: When we used to do the diamond trap or like a, you know, like a one, two, one, one, I would always put my best reader in the middle, you know, try to flush the one side because my reader didn't really have to defend anybody.
9:04
[SPEAKER_04]: They just had to read where the class was going and go.
9:07
[SPEAKER_02]: Five steals one block.
9:09
[SPEAKER_02]: That's good defense.
9:11
[SPEAKER_00]: That's all I want to say.
9:13
[SPEAKER_00]: She turned her one block into a fast break brilliant passing at the top and talked a little trash, which we love to see from her.
9:23
[SPEAKER_00]: What is one of the favorite things about her?
9:26
[SPEAKER_02]: I thought that was a good point to bring up when you were talking about her passing today, being so good.
9:30
[SPEAKER_02]: A lot of her defense turned into excellent passes, so they were almost connected.
9:35
[SPEAKER_02]: thirteen assists and saying that's all yet the passing was unbelievable today.
9:40
[SPEAKER_04]: Dallas or a ricky I don't know man her shop for most terrible and everything and she's by no been marked with injuries this season but Dallas has some really good young guards to and I will say this I think backers and Clark will be very good for the league because
10:00
[SPEAKER_04]: And if Dallas could get a draft choice where they could get bets coming out of UCLA and get a true big.
10:06
[SPEAKER_04]: They can run the floor and really dominate like Lauren Bettscan.
10:10
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, that ups their game.
10:12
[SPEAKER_04]: The blue girl player inside.
10:14
[SPEAKER_04]: She's okay, but she's not like the defender and stuff that.
10:18
[SPEAKER_04]: Betts is or the athlete that Betts is and that's what they're really missing.
10:21
[SPEAKER_04]: They're really missing a really good post player.
10:24
[SPEAKER_02]: I think the page, Caitlin rivalry is much better for prime time than the other rivalry that everybody tries to push with Caitlin.
10:31
[SPEAKER_02]: So I really do think it's good for the league.
10:34
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, long term for sure.
10:35
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah.
10:36
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah.
10:40
[SPEAKER_00]: I've been seeing some rumbling this week that Stephanie White is not the right coach for the fever, which I found pretty ridiculous even though they're struggling.
10:50
[SPEAKER_00]: And today was like she's pushing the right button.
10:52
[SPEAKER_00]: She's the right.
10:53
[SPEAKER_04]: She's lonely that I was glad to see him finally announced on the broadcast that Caitlyn has been under a ministry restriction because I've been seeing tweets.
11:02
[SPEAKER_04]: Oh, Stephanie White didn't know what she's doing.
11:04
[SPEAKER_04]: Caitlyn's only played on the heck.
11:06
[SPEAKER_04]: She would play that many more minutes
11:07
[SPEAKER_04]: She was playing for me.
11:08
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, I wanted to respond, but I won't because I don't get into those engaging, but you figured that she was on a ministry street.
11:15
[SPEAKER_04]: And so I was so glad to hear them not mention it just not once, but two or three times today.
11:20
[SPEAKER_04]: So fans out there understand, Kayla's not playing thirty-some minutes again.
11:27
[SPEAKER_04]: because they don't want her to play thirty system and are she, you know, it's because she the doctors have said she can't right now when sheep and you don't really want her to play those many minutes unless you need to.
11:37
[SPEAKER_02]: Here's the thing I think about no need for up.
11:40
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, you don't you don't need to burn her out just if you're winning the game, we don't force it, but here's the thing that I'll say about
11:48
[SPEAKER_02]: those comments like there's fever fans that care about Caitlyn and the team and then there's Caitlyn Clark fans who only care about Caitlyn Clark and they want to see what they want to see and they're not really into and all like the whole thing and those are the ones making the stupid comments.
12:03
[SPEAKER_02]: We got the same thing about Christy size last year and I don't think Christy size was as bad as everybody said she was.
12:08
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm not saying she's Stephanie White level.
12:10
[SPEAKER_02]: She's not great but I don't think she's as bad as the heat she took.
12:14
[SPEAKER_02]: All right.
12:14
[SPEAKER_02]: You know what I mean?
12:16
[SPEAKER_03]: She's bad.
12:17
[SPEAKER_03]: She's still doesn't know she doesn't have a job.
12:19
[SPEAKER_03]: And I know the female thing out, but she was really good.
12:22
[SPEAKER_03]: She'd be somewhere college somewhere.
12:23
[SPEAKER_03]: Somebody would have been out.
12:24
[SPEAKER_02]: Well, that's fine.
12:25
[SPEAKER_02]: But like she took way more heat than I think she needed, right?
12:29
[SPEAKER_02]: Like, well, I don't need to go on the Christie side's conversation.
12:32
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm just saying like, but like, she was more about
12:34
[SPEAKER_00]: It was more about sitting in and having a fair.
12:39
[SPEAKER_02]: But these people are saying the same stuff like if the people have one bad game or God forbid two bad games in a row, people are going to start throwing everybody but Caitlin under the bus, right?
12:48
[SPEAKER_02]: Because that's what they do.
12:50
[SPEAKER_04]: If Caitlin has shoes poorly, it's the coaching.
12:52
[SPEAKER_04]: They don't have her in the right spot.
12:53
[SPEAKER_04]: It can't be that Caitlin is just going through a shooting club like Henry.
12:57
[SPEAKER_02]: But see you're you're given more credibility to these comments that I even think they're they deserve like they're just stupid comments from people that don't know what they're talking about so like Let's just all give everyone on the team a chance to breathe good a chance to get together and play and yes, I love Caitlyn as much as anybody obviously the game today was beautiful but later the game was there was a beautiful game because she and I think this is the thing she knows
13:21
[SPEAKER_02]: what makes this team work is when she gets everybody involved.
13:24
[SPEAKER_02]: She knows that.
13:25
[SPEAKER_02]: So everybody else that's why in a crying state give Caitlin a bigger role and give Caitlin this and that like she doesn't even want that.
13:30
[SPEAKER_02]: So like the idiots that are saying it are going to get to the person they supposedly love.
13:35
[SPEAKER_02]: I want to like so on that line, let's talk about Natasha Howard.
13:39
[SPEAKER_02]: There's lots of talk about how she's like a ball vacuum.
13:42
[SPEAKER_02]: She gets the ball and then she dribbles around too much and misses a really close shot.
13:46
[SPEAKER_02]: And that's been the case, but I really think I saw change in her today to where she realizes if you let Caitlin get her in position or let her you run the play.
13:55
[SPEAKER_02]: Caitlin will find you and get you your points.
13:57
[SPEAKER_02]: You don't have to force it anymore.
13:58
[SPEAKER_00]: You don't have to do great job moving without the ball for sure.
14:01
[SPEAKER_02]: she absolutely did and she was flying down the court on fast breaks and she was making amazing cuts so I really hope that that's something that she's unlocked in her mind and realize I'm gonna get mine if I just let the game flow so I was really happy with Natasha Howard's play today.
14:15
[SPEAKER_04]: I was also I was really pleased with Sophie coming him she again another really terrific game off the bench she's really starting to be that
14:27
[SPEAKER_04]: that producer off, you know, off the bench and it McDonald doesn't start her McDonald's coming off.
14:32
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, it's really nice.
14:33
[SPEAKER_04]: And she's even stepping up for defense.
14:35
[SPEAKER_04]: It might not be at the same level as Lexi, but when Lexi's out, I mean, you're not Lou, you don't lose a whole lot.
14:43
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, that's right.
14:43
[SPEAKER_04]: Guys, Sophie's playing the way.
14:44
[SPEAKER_00]: The starters, you know, the starters today got behind in the first quarter.
14:49
[SPEAKER_00]: It was the second team that lifted them to got them that lead.
14:52
[SPEAKER_00]: And then, of course, the starters came back in and took it to another level.
14:56
[SPEAKER_02]: I think you stand from, so what you see from Sophie is she's bringing the TJ energy off the bench, right?
15:02
[SPEAKER_02]: Like I don't know how it's the Sophie energy was the same type of thing as TJ McConnell, right?
15:06
[SPEAKER_02]: She's coming in and she's like getting them all fired up and she's playing great.
15:10
[SPEAKER_02]: I'm really happy with Sophie for multiple reasons.
15:13
[SPEAKER_02]: I mean, thirteen points and everything's good, but I love what she's doing to hype up the team.
15:17
[SPEAKER_00]: She moves at a quick pace.
15:19
[SPEAKER_00]: We love it.
15:19
[SPEAKER_00]: Moving quickly at all times, very similar to TJ McConnell.
15:24
[SPEAKER_00]: All right, Tuesday night, the Connecticut sun, how concerned are we about dirty play?
15:30
[SPEAKER_02]: You know, I think they're trying to push it a little bit.
15:32
[SPEAKER_02]: I don't even know, Connecticut's trying to push it or like some league media is trying to push it because they had that interview with one of the players, then they were super, and they were laughing about the whole Marina is going to knock her over and Kaley gets punched the bat.
15:45
[SPEAKER_02]: Like, I'm not that worried.
15:46
[SPEAKER_00]: That was the one thing that I found to be actually dirty so far.
15:50
[SPEAKER_02]: You know, I agree.
15:52
[SPEAKER_02]: And I think they're gonna try it, but like I think, I think Sophie, I'll shut it down quick.
15:57
[SPEAKER_02]: I just, I don't think Sophie's gonna let it go.
15:59
[SPEAKER_02]: I think Sophie's gonna come in ready to brawl.
16:04
[SPEAKER_02]: Good.
16:05
[SPEAKER_03]: You agree with that?
16:08
[SPEAKER_00]: And then of course, the liberty, and then all star break, Indianapolis, so exciting time, and we're gonna have lots of podcasts coming up.
16:14
[SPEAKER_00]: Guys, final thoughts before we go.
16:18
[SPEAKER_02]: I just think that if you are one of the people that have been stressed out and worried about the team this should alleviate some of that like they can pull the last two games they've played incredibly well they scored what ninety nine the game before and a hundred and two today so in two games they got two hundred and one points that's solid for WMBA like you're not seeing a hundred very often in WMBA so there's more than a hundred and ten between the second half of the last game in the first half of this game
16:43
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, yeah, it was incredible.
16:45
[SPEAKER_02]: Like so just what I've been saying the whole time, take a deep breath, let them figure it out.
16:50
[SPEAKER_02]: They're going to be fine.
16:52
[SPEAKER_04]: Great John, I think they are going to be really, they are going to be fine.
16:56
[SPEAKER_04]: They're going to be really a funding to watch in the second half of the season as long as they stay healthy.
17:02
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, of course, you know, you say that about anybody, but the fever, if they stay healthy, just watch at it, it will be fun and it will be fun coming down into the playoffs because, you know, I really
17:13
[SPEAKER_04]: Look for them and liberty and I think the links are struggling a little bit right now, but it's just going to be bottom line as they play like today.
17:24
[SPEAKER_00]: I don't think anybody beats them.
17:26
[SPEAKER_02]: No, and yeah, that today showed potential.
17:29
[SPEAKER_02]: They're going to have up games.
17:30
[SPEAKER_02]: They're going to have down games.
17:31
[SPEAKER_02]: Well, you know, fans got to keep their expectations realistic.
17:34
[SPEAKER_02]: You can't.
17:35
[SPEAKER_02]: They're not going to win every game from here on out.
17:37
[SPEAKER_04]: So take a deep breath.
17:42
[SPEAKER_02]: But if they play like they do today and they run like they do today and they pass like we do today, it's going to be hard.
17:47
[SPEAKER_02]: They're going to win way more games than they lose.
17:53
[SPEAKER_00]: Thanks so much to Jonathan Michelle for joining me again after another fever, victory.
18:03
[SPEAKER_00]: And thank you for listening.
18:05
[SPEAKER_00]: Always appreciate it.
18:08
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18:13
[SPEAKER_00]: Please share with your friends and family and strangers on the street.
18:19
[SPEAKER_00]: Always appreciate it.
18:22
[SPEAKER_00]: The Central Indiana Sports Report is a product of ITG media and I love Susie.