Liberty fall to Fever in closing seconds

INDIANAPOLIS Tamika Catchings scored 23 points, including the winning free throws with 8.4 seconds left, to give the Indiana Fever an 84-82 victory over the Liberty on Tuesday.

Katie Douglas scored 20 points and Shavonte Zellous added 12 as the Fever (10-6) squandered a 12-point lead and trailed by four in the final minutes before rallying.

We did a good job holding our composure down the stretch, Catchings said. When you look at it there are things that youre happy about and things you arent happy about. Just continuing our quest to be a good team. We made some great defensive stops.

Indiana finished 53 percent from the field, including 9 for 18 on 3-pointers.

Cappie Pondexter scored a season-high 33 points and Essence Carson added 14 for the Liberty (6-11), who have lost two straight and six of nine.

[I] felt like we could have won the game, Pondexter said. We had a chance. It seems like we battle this team back and forth, playoffs, regular season, for the past three years ever since Ive been in New York.

Trailing 73-70 midway through the fourth quarter, the Liberty scored seven consecutive points to take their biggest lead. Leilani Mitchell made 3 to tie the score, Pondexter hit a technical free throw called on Indianas Briann January for arguing and then Pondexter made a 3 to put the Liberty up 77-73 with 3/ minutes to go.

Catchings came back with a 3-pointer nearly a minute later and hit another one with 1:53 remaining to give the Fever a 79-77 lead.

Pondexter hit a tying jumper, and Douglas and Pondexter traded 3-pointers 14 seconds apart to leave the score tied at 82 with 35.5 seconds to go.

The Fever passed inbounds with 17.5 seconds left in the game and six seconds to go on the shot clock. The ball went all the way to the backcourt, where January tracked it down, hustled upcourt and missed a desperation shot. Catchings rebounded and was fouled. She made both free throws to put Indiana ahead.

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Liberty fall to Fever in closing seconds