SPORTS TODAY
Indiana Fever star Kelsey Mitchell had an early exit in Game 5 of the WNBA semifinals against the Las Vegas Aces with what appeared to be a left leg injury, but was later revealed to be lower body cramping. The incident left the Fever even more shorthanded than usual and they ultimately suffered a 98-107 loss in overtime.
“She’s got a lot of lower body cramping. She’s currently at the hospital right now getting fluids,” Indiana coach Stephanie White said postgame.
Mitchell was seen reaching for her left knee with some discomfort halfway through the third quarter. Not long after, she went down and stayed on the floor for a while. Her teammates quickly surrounded her and held towels for her privacy.
The medical staff brought out a stretcher, but Mitchell did not use it and walked to the locker room with assistance. As she walked out, she received supportive cheers from both teams and the crowd at Michelob Ultra Arena. At the time of her exit, the Fever were down 55-59. Mitchell had 15 points on 50% shooting, including going 3-of-3 from beyond the arc.
The 29-year-old has been playing some of the best basketball of her career and was leading the Fever with 23.3 points per game during the playoffs. This is yet another tough break for the Fever, who have not been able to shake the injury bug this season. Their injury list includes Damiris Dantas (concussion), Caitlin Clark (groin), Chloe Bibby (knee), Sophine Cunningham (MCL), Sydney Colson (torn ACL) and Aari McDonald (foot).
“We’ve been in this position before right?”White told her team in the huddle. “We gotta fight for our teammates. Tooth and nail… We fight for her right now.”
Those words of encouragement kept her team locked in. The Fever did not give up easily and were able to force overtime despite Mitchell’s absence. However, the Aces turned up the intensity in overtime to advance their third WNBA Finals in four years.
Indiana Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton suffered a torn right Achilles tendon in Game 7 of the NBA Finals last year, and he was one of the first one’s to send well wishes to Mitchell.
