Striving For It All August 19th, 2024 #CaitlinClark #IndianaFever #WNBA #sports #KelseyMitchell

Intro [Music] hello everybody I'm Ed Robinson and welcome to another exciting edition of striving for it all this is the program that get you caught up on anything and everything happening around the WNBA coming up on this edition of the program the New York Liberty hit a milestone this year and also we'll have your league leaders and standings and so much more so stick around for that and enjoy the program as always I like to start off with my top three storylines I like CaitlinClark to start off talking about Caitlyn Clark Caitlyn Clark right tore it up at the University of Iowa during her college career her rookie year with the WNBA with the Indiana Fever first half of the year started off rough but finished on a high note however Caitlyn as you know left off of this year's Olympic team a blessing in disguise the Olympic break lasted 3 weeks since the WNBA has returned from the Olympic break Caitlyn Clark has been on fire as well as her team the Indiana Fever which I will get to a little bit later Caitlyn has just been on a tear breaking records during the first half of the year and then coming back from the Olympic break continuing to break more records bottom line is this Caitlyn Clark is box office she was box office being a part of the whole Renaissance the Revival or should I say an era in women's college basketball her along with Angel ree also Paige Beckers Juju Watkins Hannah hogo just the name a few now Caitlyn since she's been in the W she's been met with a lot of resistance there's been some jealousy there's been some Envy but as I stated earlier Caitlyn Clark has been box office since she's been in the WNBA the Indiana Fever have seen ticket sales go up they've seen engagement on their social media platforms like X go up jersey sales have gone up they say a rising tide lifts all boats and Caitlyn Clark has been the rising tide that has been continuing to lift the bolts of the WNBA which have been sinking for decades so for a league that has never made a profit this year could still be the turning point they can turn it around however as I stated earlier Caitlyn has been met with resistance there's been the old guard that has not been friendly to her and again she's not in college it's a professional league but you would want to welcome a change like this you would want to but unfortunately it's been the complete opposite but the numbers don't lie and we've seen since Caitlyn's been in the WNBA an interest has grown not just for women's basketball but for the WNBA the numbers have gone up with social media engagement Revenue has gone up and that Olympic break the three-week Olympic break what was definitely needed for Caitlyn and the Indiana Fever if you watched her and you watched the Indiana Fever play so far since they've returned from the break they look fresh they look like they needed the break Caitlyn needed the break as well as her teammates they needed the break as well and so far so good for Caitlyn Clark a blessing in disguise you didn't make the Olympic team guess what that's more eyes will pay attention to her and more eyes will pay attention to the Indiana Fever so Caitlin she's definitely been on a roll she's been cooking since returning from the Olympic break and it's just to see her out there and she's really been playing with the Vengeance since returning from the break thus far and it's refreshing to see um Caitlyn Clark doing what she does best and that's play basketball she played at a high level before the break but she so far she has been playing at an extremely high level since returning from the break my next storyline is going to be Indiana Fever (#KelseyMitchell, #AliyahBoston & #LexieHull) the Indiana Fever so I mentioned Caitlyn Clark right but hey the Indiana Fever listen Aaliyah Boston has been balling Kelsey Mitchell Kelsey Mitchell is like a walking bucket every time I see Kelsey Mitchell get the ball in her hands I'm like uhoh it's going to be trouble either she's gonna take it to the house or she is going to set up a major three-pointer Kelsey Mitchell is a walking bucket I mean she could score points on top of points on top of points Lexi Hall especially in this last game that The Fever had Lexi has really stepped up her game and I think coach chrisy sdes the jurry is still out on her but Lexie could get more minutes I'd like to see Lexi get more minutes and despite the injury to Timmy F benley uh demirez denes has been a nice player coming off of the bench as of recent so we talk Indiana Fever yeah Caitlyn Caitlyn's going to be Caitlyn but Aaliyah Boston and especially Kelsey Mitchell my goodness man Kelsey Mitchell it was refreshing refreshing to see her make the allstar team this year was really good I mean you talk about one of the the premier offensive players in the league one of the uh solid scorers in the league one of the solid Shooters in the league that's Kelsey Mitchell and I'm liking the trio that I'm seeing with Clark Boston and Mitchell especially Clark and Boston they've developed this nice pick and roll uh combination that they have when they run the pick and roll Clark and Boston it looks similar to like a Stockton and Malone sort of speak for those of you NBA fans out there some of you remember John Stockton Carl Malone how they ran the pick and roll to Perfection well I'm seeing a similarity with Caitlyn Clark and Aaliyah Boston kadin's passes are just right on the money not just going to Aaliyah but when she passes the ball to Kelsey as well as her other teammates it's a thing of perfection I mean Caitlyn Clark yeah the three-point shooting is going to take care of itself but when you have expert passing like that it's some things that you just can't teach and certainly Caitlyn Clark just has a gift for finding the lanes and getting them to Aaliyah and getting to Kelsey as well as Nelissa Smith and Lexi Hall and the rest of her teammates so the Indiana Fever they're balling right now and since coming back from the Olympic break they have been on fire and certainly they've taken advantage of the Olympic break to get they got recharged they got re-energized not just Caitlyn but the rest of the team they really got on point and the Indiana Fever are definitely making some noise as they try to make this playoff run try to get a playoff spot maybe they get a higher spot a higher seed who knows anything can happen in professional sports and certainly the Indiana Fever if they continue on this momentum and continue on this hot streak things could definitely look up for Indiana and for my last story line is NewYorkLiberty going to be the New York Liberty so congratulations to the New York Liberty they become the first team in the WNBA this season to clinch a playoff birth and before the Olympic break they were on a roll during the month of July they only lost one game and they haven't lost a game since coming back from the Olympic break jonquel Jones playing at a high level Sabrina yonescu one of Olympic gold medal Brianna Stewart won an Olympic gold medal guess what they have not missed a beat thus far and they're playing at such a high level right now Courtney vano has played nice again she's your typical floor General as well so kudos to Sandy brondello again another solid year for the New York Liberty as they try to get back to the WNBA finals and the Liberty people would imagine you know with the jet lag and all that stuff especially yonescu and Stewart had to go through but we haven't seen that as of yet and they just picked up right where they left off at right before the Olympic break and again congratulations to the New York Liberty on becoming the first team in the WNBA this year to clench a playoff birth all right those were my top three story lines now let's take a look at the Recap of Last Week's Games week that was in the W let's start off with action from Thursday August the 15th the Phoenix Mercury would go on to beat the Chicago Sky final score 85- 65 the Minnesota links would beat the Washington Mystics 79-68 and the New York Liberty would take care of the Los Angeles Sparks 103 to 68 we move along now to action from Friday August the 16th in a close game the Atlanta Dream beat the Seattle Storm 83 to 81 the Connecticut Sun would go on to beat the Dallas Wings 1099- 91 and we had the Phoenix Mercury take on the Indiana Fever the fever would go on to beat the Mercury 98 to 89 it wasn't just about Caitlyn Clark in this game it was about Kelsey Mitchell also Aaliyah Boston and Nelissa Smith they contributed in a major way as well here's some action from the fever win against the Mercury as Boston finds Mitchell who finishes as Boston dips inside and can't finish Boston w wrestling through a triple team here is Clark off the screen launches and drops a triple dialing back and it's Clark on the other end at 22 samelson good ball movement and finds Smith Mitchell pulls up and connects Mitchell launches and hits a three dtis oh tips it there's Smith on the receiving end Mitchell working on copper a couple of Allstars oh Mitchell she wins that battle fourth fastest pace of play and that suits Caitlyn Clark Clark oh from the logo couldn't get it to go but there's Boston who cleans up underneath Indiana comes up with a turnover here is Clark This Time It's Smith with a foul and an and one here's Mitchell oh behind the defense and Caitlyn Clark can do no wrong wheeler turns the corner gets inside extra pass that was pretty and Boston cleans up as Mitchell puts an end to it with a three and Mitchell from the heavens Clark step back on a KN two oh gets the shooters touch Mitchell with 5 seconds left Cross Court Clark does Clark see the clock hand off Samuelson who buries a three Samuelson beats the buzzer Clark off the screen finds some space and delivers it's a triple for Caitlyn Clark Clark seeing two bounces oh beautiful it's Boston with the Finish Mitchell Corner three connects Mark sizing up Cunningham here is Mitchell another three Mitchell is locked in he gets the step on Cunningham Clark gets to the rim and Lexi Hull a triple of her own Clark cutting it's Mitchell with the Finish all right that audio was courtesy of the WNBA and ion so again the final score was Indiana 98 Phoenix 89 so for the fever Caitlyn Clark had a double double with 29 Points and 10 assists Kelsey Mitchell finished with 28 points Aaliyah Boston had 14 points and Nelissa Smith finished with 13 points on a losing in for Phoenix Kalia copper was the leading scorer with 32 points Natasha cloud finished with 19 points Diana terasi finished with 16 points and Britney grinder finished with 10 points once again the final score was Indiana 98 Phoenix 89 we move along now to action from Saturday August the 17th we had the Minnesota links beat the Washington Mystics 99 to 83 the New York Liberty beat the Las Vegas Aces 79-67 we had the Chicago sky beat the Los Angeles Sparks 90 to 86 and then we had action from Sunday August the 18th we had the Atlanta Dream beat the Connecticut Sun 82-70 we had the Las Vegas aces beat the Los Angeles Sparks 87- 71 the Phoenix Mercury would go on to beat the Chicago Sky 86 to 68 despite the loss for the Sky Angel Reed had 19 points to go along with 20 rebounds and then we had the Seattle Storm take on the Indiana Fever Indiana would beat Seattle 92- 75 Kelsey Mitchell and Caitlyn Clark they handled their business in this game but this is also a game where Lexi Hall she shined in a major way here's the fever in Action Against The Storm here's Clark Clark looking to take it around Lloyd Clark bodies in and finishes oh what a pass Boston to Mitchell for the Finish Boston fakes the handoff going one-on-one with Russell and taking it to the rack Clark what a pass H stride and H lays it in Clark trying to shake Witham step back is good here's Clark look at to shake coron Clark sings the pass h on the wing connects here is Mitchell off to the racing Scoops it in Clark blitzed passes out of it to Boston there is Mitchell out of three Clark the fling ahead oh what a dime and Mitchell lays it in and K 226 in counting for Clark misses the three short D samelson can't hit the three in the corner Boston the rebound Clark a good look she got it he's not what to die Clark to Boston Mitchell the knock away Clark's three it's good over to Clark Clark on the Move Little Runner is good here's Clark quick First Step Clark cutting to the hoop able to lay it in Nelson slings it over to Hole wide open three she got it for Indiana on QBE just Mitchell Reigns in a three there's Clark bouncing Boston hit it speeds into the paint curls around hold conck Clark lobbing it in Boston draws two in the corner ho you B Clark she got it here's Mitchell alone connects Clark speeds into the paint kicks it out ductus she gu everybody involved to Boston Boston for to shoot D step back is good all right that audio courtesy of the WNBA ABC and the Walt Disney Company so the fever handled their business beating Seattle 92- 75 Kelsey Mitchell was the leading scorer with 27 points Caitlyn Clark finished with 23 points Aaliyah Boston only had nine points but she had 15 rebounds but Lexi Hall she was Sensational in this game she finished with 22 points on the losing end for Seattle juel Lloyd finished with 26 points Skyler diin Smith finished with 15 points and NECA agum finished with 14 points again the final score was Indiana 92 Seattle 75 and that takes care of the week that was in the W all right as always it's now time to League Leaders & Standings give you your current league leaders let's start off with points per game the current leading scorer in the W is Asia Wilson from the Las Vegas Aces she's averaging 27 points per game coming in at number two is Kalia Copper from the Phoenix Mercury at number three arque oomba from the Dallas wings at number four juel l from the Seattle Storm and coming in in fifth is nafisa ker from the Minnesota links next category is rebounds per game at number one from the Chicago Sky Angel Reese she's averaging over 12 rebounds a game at number two Asia Wilson at number three diar Hami from the Los Angeles Sparks at number four nafisa ker and at number five JN quel Jones from the New York Liberty next category is assist per game at number one representing the Indiana Fever Caitlyn Clark she's averaging over eight assists per game at number two Alysa Thomas from the Connecticut Sun at number three Natasha cloud from the Phoenix Mercury at number four Skyler Diggin Smith from the Seattle Storm and at number five Sabrina yonescu from the New York Liberty next category is going to be steals per game at number one repr presenting the Dallas Wings AR oon boale she's averaging close to three steals per game at number two nafisa ker at number three Asia Wilson at number four from the Atlanta Dream Ryan Howard and at number five representing the New York Liberty Brianna Stewart next category is going to be blocks per game at number one representing the Las Vegas Aces Asia Wilson at number two eie magore from the Seattle Storm at number three from the Los Angeles Sparks Cameron Brink at number four Elena Smith from the Minnesota links and at number five Britney Griner from the Phoenix Mercury next category is going to be field goal percentage coming in at number one Tiara maaan from the Dallas Wings she's shooting 57% from the field at number two from the Phoenix Mercury Britney Griner at number three JN coel Jones at number four from the Indiana Fever Aaliyah Boston and at number five Asia Wilson next category is going to be free throw percentage at number one Dana Evans from the Chicago Sky she shooting 97% from the free throw line at number two arque Aon boale at number three Sabrina yonu at number four Kayla McBride from the Minnesota links and at number five Caitlyn Clark next category is going to be three-point percentage at number one representing the Washington Mystics Stephanie Dolson she's shooting 50% from three-point range at number two from the Minnesota links cilia zandel laini she's shooting 46% from three-point range at number three NECA auum from the Seattle Storm coming in in fifth Elena Smith from the Minnesota links and also her teammate is right behind her tied for fifth as well Bridget Carlton from the Minnesota links and the last category is going to be minutes played at number one arri Aon Bale from the Dallas Wings she's averaging 38 minutes per game at number two Caitlyn Clark at number three de' Hami at number four Kelsey Plum from the Las Vegas Aces and at number five nafisa Ker that takes care of our current league leaders now here are the current standings currently in first place the New York Liberty they have a record of 23 wins and four losses the Liberty are the first team in the W to clinch a playoff birth coming in in second place the Connecticut Sun they have a record of 19 and seven the Minnesota links are in third place with a record of 19 and8 the Las Vegas aces are fourth with a record of 17 and N the Seattle Storm come in in fifth place with a record of 17 and 10 the Phoenix Mercury are in sixth place with a record of 15 and 13 the Indiana Fever are in seventh place with a record of 13 and 15 coming in in eighth are the Chicago sky with a record of 11 and 16 coming in in ninth are the Atlanta Dream with a record of 9 and 17 followed in 10th by the Dallas wings with a record of 6 and 20 the Los Angeles Sparks are next with a record of 6 and 21 and in last place are the Washington Mystics they also have a record of 6 and 21 and that takes care of your current standings in the WNBA all right let's look ahead now to Upcoming Games the upcoming games for the week in the W so let's start off on Tuesday August the 20th we have 7:00 p.m. Eastern 600 p.m. central tip BS where we have the Los Angeles Sparks going up against the Connecticut sun and we also have the Dallas Wing the Dallas Wings going up against the New York Liberty and you can watch the Los Angeles and Connecticut game on league pass and you can also watch the Dallas and New York game on league pass and NBA TV and then Seattle Storm will go up against the Washington Mystics you can watch that game on League Pass we move along now to action on Wednesday August the 21st so tip off will be at 7:30 p.m. Eastern 600 p.m. central will we have the Phoenix Mercury going up against the Atlanta Dream you can watch that game on league pass and then at 9:30 p.m. Eastern 7:30 p.m. Pacific we have the Minnesota links going up against the Las Vegas Aces you can watch that game on ESPN we have action on Thursday August the 22nd tip off is at 7:00 p.m. Eastern 600 p.m. central where we have the Dallas Wings going up against the New York Liberty you can watch that game on Prime video and then we move ahead to Friday August the 23rd 7:30 p.m. Eastern 6:30 p.m. central tip offs where we have the Phoenix Mercury going up against the Atlanta Dream the Chicago sky going up against the Connecticut sun and the Los Angeles Sparks going up against the Washington Mystics you can watch those games on ION and League Pass depending on where you are in the in the country so depending on the region that you live in you can catch either one of those early games and then at 9:30 p.m. Eastern 8:30 p.m. central the Las Vegas Aces will s off against the Minnesota links you can watch that game on ION and League Pass we move ahead to action on Saturday August the 24th 700 p.m. Eastern 600 p.m Central tip off with the Connecticut Sun going up against the New York Liberty you can watch that game on league pass and then 8:00 p.m. Eastern 7 p.m. central Caitlyn Clark Kelsey Mitchell Aaliyah Boston and the Indiana Fever will score off against the Minnesota links and you can watch that game on NBA TV and League Pass then we had the action now on Sunday August the 25th 12:00 p.m. Eastern 11:00 a.m. tip off the Las Vegas Aces go up against the Chicago Sky you can watch that game on CBS and then 4:00 p.m. Eastern 3:00 p.m. central Time the Los Angeles Sparks will go up against the Dallas Wings you can watch that game on NBA TV and League Pass we move ahead to action now on Monday August the 26th we have a tip off for 7:30 p.m. Eastern 6:30 p.m. central with the Indiana Fever going up against the Atlanta Dream you can watch that game on NBA TV and league pass and then we have tip offs at 10 p.m. Eastern 8:00 p.m. Pacific with the New York Liberty going up against the Phoenix Mercury and we have the Washington Mystics going up against the Seattle Storm you can watch the New York and Phoenix game on NBA TV and league pass and you can watch the Washington and Seattle game on League Pass we move along to action on Tuesday August the 27th 8:00 p.m. Eastern 700 p.m. central tip off between the Las Vegas Aces and the Dallas Wings you can watch that game on NBA TV and league pass and then we move to ahead to action now on Wednesday August the 28th 700 p.m. Eastern 600 p.m. central tip off with the Connecticut Sun going up against the Indiana Fever you can watch that game on NBA TV and League Pass we have a 800m Eastern 7 P.M Central tip off with the Washington Mystics going up against the Chicago sky you can watch that game on league pass and then we have 10 pm Eastern 800m Pacific tip offs with the New York Liberty going up against the Los Angeles Sparks the Minnesota links going up against the Phoenix Mercury and the Atlanta Dream going up against the Seattle Storm you can watch the Minnesota and Phoenix game and the Atlanta and Seattle game on league pass and the New York and LA game you can watch that game on NBA TV and league pass those are your upcoming games for the week in the W so we're in Outro the full swing of things the Olympic break has come and gone and now we've got a month and a half left of the regular season and things are starting to pick up quite a bit quite a bit the New York Liberty they've already punched their ticket into the playoffs it's just a matter of now who's going to have which position who's going to move up or who's going to move down with the Indiana Fever continue to move up will the Connecticut sun move down or will we see the Minnesota links move up what about the Las Vegas Aces will the defending Champions move up hey we have a month and a half to figure that out as the second half of the WNBA season is well underway thank you so much again for joining me on the program until next time everybody I'm met Robinson saying so long and you take care hey everybody thank you so much for tuning in to the channel remember to click like share and subscribe and thank you for watching