Kelsey Mitchell scores 36 in Indiana Fever's victory over Seattle

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Fever survived a close game against the Seattle Storm, 90-86, for their 10th win of the season on Thursday night.

The Fever led by as much as seven points in the third quarter but watched that lead trickle away as the minutes counted down in the second half. The Storm had a one-point lead with one minute left in the game, but Fever guard Kristy Wallace forced a well-timed offensive foul on Seattle's Jewell Loyd to get the ball back. Kelsey Mitchell then took the lead back with a jump shot. The Fever did not trail again.

"I believe that the Fever won a game because of Kristy Wallace, and that's why we're here today," Mitchell said.

Indiana (10-24) is in a two-way tie for 10th place with the Storm. It's the first time Indiana has won 10 games in a season since 2019.

"Just the fact that we doubled last year's wins, huge team win tonight," head coach Christie Sides said. "People contributed, even those who didn't play very many minutes."

Here are three observations from the win:

Kelsey Mitchell propels Fever to second-straight victory

The Fever's sixth-year guard has found herself on a hot streak. She propelled Indiana to victory on the road over Phoenix on Sunday, eclipsing 3,000 career points in a fourth-quarter barrage of 3-pointers.

Mitchell had her second straight 25+-point game Thursday, shooting 10-of-20 from the field (including 4-of-9 from the 3-point line) for 36 points — two away from the franchise single-game record, which she set in 2019 — to secure another victory for Indiana.

"She shot the hell out of the ball," Sides said. "I kept running staggers for her, she's just done such a good job coming up on those staggers, getting those looks ... she's making plays, she's just doing everything we need her to do."

Thirteen of those 26 points came in the fourth quarter, nearly singlehandedly keeping the Fever in the game with clutch shots and end-of-game free throws, going 12-of-16 from the line.

"I believe the Steph Curry thing where you've got .5 seconds to choose what you want to do," Mitchell said. "It was important to make sure everybody kind of got a flow on our team and then I utilize the moments when I can."

By the end of the night, Mitchell was the star of an all-around performance. Aliyah Boston and NaLyssa Smith had double-doubles, while Grace Berger had 14 points off the bench.

"If I could have those every night, that would be awesome," Sides said. "We've got a great young group that can be so dynamic and do great things, but they're still learning to put things together."

Aliyah Boston breaks another Fever rookie record

One week after breaking the Fever rookie record for field goals made, Indiana No. 1 pick Aliyah Boston is quickly climbing up the ranks. With her 45th block of the season Thursday, Boston officially passed Teaira McCowan's 2019 record of 44 blocks.

Boston is also on the verge of breaking McCowan's rookie offensive rebound record. McCowan had 108 offensive boards in 2019, and Boston finished Thursday's game with 106. Boston is also officially second in rebounding for a Fever rookie, passing Tamika Catchings' 275-rebound mark. With 279 rebounds, the 2023 No. 1 pick is 26 behind McCowan's mark of 305.

"I've been on her about boxing out," Sides said. "She doesn't box out sometimes and still thinks she's going to get some looks at the rebound, so we've really, really, talked about that."

Hull remains sidelined

Fever second-year guard Lexie Hull missed her second straight game with a right shoulder injury. The part-time starter suffered the injury in the second half of the Fever's loss to Washington on Aug. 18.

Sides did not give an official prognosis for Hull pregame, but said the rehab process for her injury is slow. With only six games left, it is possible Hull may be out for the rest of the season. Known as the Fever's elite defender, Hull always took the toughest defensive assignment for Indiana's opponents. averaged 20.2 minutes per game this season with 4.6 points and 1.1 rebounds.

Wallace took over Hull's defensive assignment Thursday, guarding Loyd. While Loyd ended with 30 points on the night, Wallace shut her down in the most pivotal moments to come out with a Fever victory.

"I thought she did an excellent job," Sides said of Wallace's defensive effort. "Jewell still gets hers, right, but she made everything tough for her."

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana Fever win 10th game of season with victory over Seattle Storm