in a scary moment as we went to commercial. Sophie Cunningham hit the floor hard. And Sophie Cunningham, oh man, I got to tell you, this victory, um, it came with a big, big, big price. Look at today’s game where Sophie Cunningham went out in the first half. And that was such a huge blow for the Indiana Fever because Sophie Cunningham has been somebody, she has been the glue of this team since Caitlyn has been out.
Sophie Cunningham was flatout targeted by a dirty dirty player. I’d say there’s a near 0% chance that Sophie Cunningham plays again this year if we’re being honest. The basketball gods have officially declared war on the Indiana Fever. And today they delivered their most devastating blow yet by taking out Sophie Cunningham in the most heartbreaking way possible.
What started as another routine game against the basement dwelling Connecticut’s son, turned into an absolute nightmare when Bria Hartley, who apparently thinks she’s playing rugby instead of basketball, crashed directly into Sophie’s knee and left Indiana’s toughest defender writhing in agony on the court. I couldn’t believe it.
I didn’t know what it was at first when I saw her went down. So, let’s break down the play where Sophie got hurt. So, as you can see here, Bria Hartley is going baseline. Kelsey Mitchell is guarding her and then Sophie comes over to help and then Bria Hartley falls on her leg and Sophie immediately grabs like her shin area.
They went at Sophie Cunningham early and considering this is Bria Hartley, I’m not ruling out that she jumped through any considering who it is. I’m not like Bria Hartley has start has been ejected multiple times. She’s yanked Angel by the hair and this is the Connecticut Sun.
This is a team that or that have jumped through players knees before. Bria Hartley has had dirty plays all season. But you got to know who we’re talking about. Bria Hartley is the same girl that pulled Angel Reese out of there by her ponytail just last game. I think two days ago. She pulls Becca Allen by her head to the floor and Ariel Atkins goes over there to protect her teammate.

Bria Hartley has been doing dirty things for all season. She’s been a dirty player. The sight of Sophie clutching her right knee while tears stream down her face was enough to make every Fever fan question whether this cursed season will ever catch a break from the injury plague that’s been haunting them all year.
But here’s where this story takes the most incredible turn you could possibly imagine. Because what happened next defied every law of physics, mathematics, and common sense as the Indiana Fever pulled off the largest comeback in franchise history without their defensive anchor and with a roster held together by athletic tape and pure determination.
Smash that like button and drop comeback queens in the comments because what you’re about to witness is the kind of sports magic that happens maybe once in a lifetime for 25 minutes. Didn’t look like we had any business beating this Connecticut Sun team. For 25 minutes, we looked like the worst team on the court.
Defensive rotations, Marina hitting the three. Sayia Rivers taking it to the rim. Tina Charles, Aaliyah Edwards out rebounding AB Natasha Howard. But we came alive when we needed to come alive. We forced overtime. Kelsey Mitchell backto-back threes in OT. Lexi Hull dagger three putting the nail in the coffin. I’m so proud of you.
Proud of you, too. Proud of you. I’m so proud of you guys. I know that sometimes it sounds like just word when we talk about being resilient, but it’s not, man. It’s how we live. Yeah. It’s how y’all live. And it’s a tribute to you. It’s a tribute to your connectedness, your togetherness, your your your toughness, your mindset, your never give up gritty attitudes.
Like that’s what it takes. That’s what it takes. And we will never never be counted out because that is worth gold. That is worth gold. The injury itself was absolutely sickening to watch unfold in real time. And anyone who’s been following the WNBA this season knows exactly who Bria Hartley is and what kind of reputation she’s built for herself.
This is the same player who pulled Angel Ree out of the air by her ponytail. The same dirty competitor who’s been throwing elbows and making reckless plays all season long while somehow avoiding the kind of consequences that should have gotten her suspended months ago. When Hartley drove to the basket in the second quarter and lost control, she didn’t just fall awkwardly, she crashed directly into Sophie’s planted right leg like a wrecking ball hitting a support beam.
The impact was so violent and so clearly avoidable that you have to wonder whether these officials are going to continue allowing this kind of reckless behavior until someone’s career gets ended permanently. Now, she was on the ground. She was crying. She was yelling. It definitely seemed like she was in a ton of pain.
The training staff went over to her. They went to commercial break. Like it was a real injury. This wasn’t something and Sophie’s the type of player a lot of times when she does get injured, she just gets right back up. She tries to walk it off. This was something that kept her down and it was so it was so hard to see.
It is ironic because Bria Hartley has been in multiple scuffles this year with the Connecticut Sun. A lot of people would categorize her as a dirty player. She roughs house and Kathy Ingleberg. This is why I say you wonder why there’s so many goddamn injuries all over the league because you are allowing people to play rugby and football and do UFC moves in the middle of a basketball game.
In the beginning of this game, Sophie Cunningham is bringing the ball up the floor. She gets mugged, hit upside the head, knocked to the floor while dribbling the ball up the floor 75 ft away from the rim. Do you think the refs called anything? Both Sophie’s sister, I believe, and her mother both tweeted about this play. Now, Lindsay, her sister said, “WNBA, maybe you should focus less on finding players for commenting on your poor officiating and more about hiring officials that are able to call a consistent game and protect your athletes. Pathetic. Praying
for you, Sophie.” And then Paula, who I think is her mom, that’s what the internet is saying. She said, “Hartley is a disgruntled player, having trouble everywhere she goes. She’s plain mean and plays out of control.” Sophie’s reaction told you everything you needed to know about the severity of what just happened.
Because this is a player who’s built her entire identity around being tough, physical, and never backing down from anyone or anything. Watching her immediately grab her knee and start hopping around on one leg before collapsing to the floor in visible agony was the kind of moment that makes your stomach drop because you know something serious just occurred.
The fact that she had to be helped off the court by trainers and teammates while clearly struggling to put any weight on that leg should have been the end of the story for Indiana, especially considering they’re already down to basically a skeleton crew of healthy players. But here’s what makes this whole situation even more infuriating from a leaguewide perspective.
This injury was completely preventable if the WNBA had been doing its job all season long instead of allowing players like Hartley to play like they’re in a demolition derby. The referees in this game had already let Hartley and her teammates get away with multiple cheap shots and overly physical plays in the first quarter, including knocking Sophie to the floor while she was dribbling the ball 75 ft away from the basket without calling anything.
When you create an environment where players know they can get away with rugby tactics and UFC moves without consequences, eventually someone’s going to get seriously hurt. And that’s exactly what happened today. The Connecticut Sun, by the way, if you guys have seen, they’ve done a lot like they have done a lot of reckless things in this game that haven’t led to fouls.
I don’t think this is I I hope this isn’t reckless. I can’t rule out it being reckless. I hope it’s not reckless. But at the same time, like the referees, there were so many situations earlier on in the game that in fairness that the referees were letting away with. The referees thought, “Okay, yeah, let’s let’s tee up Sophie Cunningham straight away in the game and that’s going to like that’s keeping the game in control.
” But from minute one, the Connecticut Sonic, how many times have the Connecticut Sonic against a fever dove through people’s knees? Multiple times this team has you guys brag about how physical you guys wear like a badge of honor. We’re here to watch basketball. If we want to watch wrestling, we’ll watch wrestling. If we want to watch fighting, we’ll watch fighting.
We’re here to watch basketball. And and Bria Hartley is no different than DJ Carrington. It’s just nobody talks about it cuz she’s on the Connecticut Sun and they suck. What’s particularly maddening is knowing that Sophie Cunningham has become the heart and soul of this fever team during Caitlyn Clark’s extended absence. Serving as the one player willing to stand up for her teammates and bring the kind of intensity and defensive presence that championship teams require.
She’s been Indiana’s most consistent performer since the All-Star break, averaging over 12 points per game while shooting better than 50% from three-point range and providing the kind of leadership that you simply can’t replace with any random player off the street. Losing her for any extended period of time would be catastrophic for a team that’s already hanging on by a thread in the playoff race.
Sophie Cunningham was by far, as the games went along, by a landslide, the best addition we had on this roster. From her play, her shot making, her defense, the intensity she brings, the energy, her having Caitlyn Clark’s back and actually being willing to fight and scrap when nobody else would hold Caitlyn Clark down.
Sophie Cunningham said, “You know what? I got you. Now she’s done. The best addition we had all season. She is playing so incredibly well during the second half of this season. She plays hard every single night. She’s super tough. She doesn’t make excuses. Like she is somebody who has really held this team together. The timing couldn’t be worse for the Fever, who came into this game having lost four of their last five contests and desperately needing a victory against the worst team in the league to keep their postseason hopes alive. With
Caitlyn Clark missing her 13th consecutive game due to her groin injury, Cydney Coulson and Ari McDonald both out for the season with their respective injuries, and now Sophie potentially joining that list, Indiana was looking at the very real possibility of having their season completely derailed by circumstances beyond their control.
When the Sun jumped out to a 19-point halftime lead and extended it to 21 points early in the third quarter, it felt like we were watching the final nail being hammered into the Fever’s playoff coffin. But this is where the story transforms from heartbreak into pure magic. Because instead of folding under the pressure and adversity like most teams would have done in this situation, the Indiana Fever decided to write one of the most incredible comeback stories in recent basketball history.
Led by Kelsey Mitchell, who apparently decided that losing wasn’t an option regardless of how many obstacles got thrown in their path, Indiana embarked on a second half performance that defied every statistical model and probability calculator in existence. What we witnessed was the kind of championship level heart and determination that separates good teams from great ones.
Kelsey Mitchell’s performance in this game deserves its own dedicated documentary series because what she accomplished over the final two and a half quarters of basketball was nothing short of supernatural. After managing just four points in the first half while watching her team fall apart around her, Mitchell erupted for 34 points in the second half and overtime to tie her careerhigh with 38 total points.
That’s not just a great individual performance. That’s the highest scoring game by any player in the entire WNBA this season. And it came at the exact moment when her team needed a miracle to keep their season alive. The numbers alone don’t do justice to what Mitchell accomplished in this comeback because she didn’t just score points.
She completely took over the game in every conceivable way. She went 11 for 222 from the field, 5 for eight from three-point range, and 11 for 12 from the free throw line while also dishing out six assists and grabbing four rebounds. More importantly, she scored all 10 of Indiana’s points in overtime, including back-to-back three-pointers that essentially put the game away and completed the largest comeback in franchise history.
When the pressure was at its highest and the stakes couldn’t have been more critical, Mitchell responded like a true superstar. What makes Mitchell’s performance even more impressive is the historical context of what she achieved. Because according to the record books, she just joined Diana Tarasi as the only players in WNBA history with multiple games of 35 or more points, six or more assists, and five or more three-pointers.
That’s the kind of company you want to be in when you’re talking about clutch performances and legendary individual efforts. The fact that this happened during the most crucial game of Indiana’s season with their playoff hopes hanging in the balance and their roster decimated by injuries makes it even more remarkable. But Mitchell didn’t accomplish this comeback single-handedly because the supporting cast that stepped up around her deserves just as much credit for refusing to give up when everything seemed hopeless. Odyssey Sims, who was
just signed to a hardship contract and made her first start for Indiana in this game, contributed 19 points and seven assists while providing the kind of veteran leadership and playmaking that kept the offense flowing. Aaliyah Boston stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, two steals, and two blocks in what was arguably her most complete performance of the season.
Natasha Howard added 18 points and provided crucial interior presence, while Lexi Hull came through with a dagger three-pointer that essentially sealed the victory with 44 seconds remaining in overtime. Even Briana Turner, who’s barely played meaningful minutes all season, contributed 10 positive minutes off the bench and helped anchor the defense during crucial stretches of the comeback.
This was a total team effort from a group that refused to use injuries and adversity as excuses for not competing at the highest level. The strategic adjustments that Stephanie White made during this comeback also deserve recognition because she managed to find the right rotations and matchups despite having a severely limited roster to work with.
The decision to start Sims and trust her with significant minutes in such a crucial game paid off tremendously. While the choice to stick with Mitchell, even when his shots weren’t falling in the first half, showed the kind of faith in her players that championship coaches demonstrate.
White’s ability to keep her team focused and motivated after watching Sophie get injured and fall behind by 21 points speaks to her growth as a leader. From a technical standpoint, this comeback was a masterclass in how to execute when facing elimination level pressure. The Fever shot just 30% in the first half and missed all 10 of their three-point attempts, but they responded by shooting 46% overall and 7 for 12 from beyond the ark in the second half.
They outrebounded Connecticut 14 to 17 on the offensive glass and forced enough turnovers to create the extra possessions needed to complete such a dramatic rally. Most importantly, they showed the kind of mental toughness and resilience that championship teams possess. The emotional significance of this victory extends far beyond just the basketball implications because it represents everything that makes sports compelling and inspiring.
Here’s a team that’s been battered by injuries all season long. that’s watched their superstar miss most of the year, that’s had to sign players off the street just to field a competitive roster, and that just lost their emotional leader to what could be a serious knee injury. Any normal group would have used those circumstances as justification for giving up and focusing on next season, but instead they dug deeper and found a way to pull off a miracle.
This comeback also sends a powerful message about the character and culture that’s been built within the Indiana Fever organization because you don’t accomplish something like this without having the right people in place and the right mindset established. The fact that role players and newcomers stepped up in crucial moments shows that this isn’t just about individual talent.
It’s about having a collective belief system that refuses to accept defeat even when the odds are stacked against you. That’s the foundation upon which championship runs are built. Looking ahead, this victory could serve as the catalyst that transforms Indiana’s entire season and playoff trajectory. They improved to 19 and 16 with the win and now sit 2 and 1/2 games ahead of the ninth place Los Angeles Sparks with just nine games remaining in the regular season.
More importantly, they prove to themselves and everyone else that they can overcome any obstacle when they play with the kind of heart and determination they showed in this comeback. That confidence and momentum could be invaluable heading into the final stretch of the regular season and potentially the playoffs.
The uncertainty surrounding Sophie Cunningham’s injury status will obviously be a major storyline moving forward as she’s scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the extent of the damage to her right knee. The fact that she was in visible pain and couldn’t put weight on the leg doesn’t bode well for a quick return.
Hopefully, the injury turns out to be less serious than it initially appeared. Indiana simply cannot afford to lose another key player for an extended period. Sophie brings a unique combination of toughness, shooting, and leadership to the table that you just can’t find anywhere else. The broader context of this injury epidemic that’s plagued the Fever all season long raises some serious questions about player safety and league oversight that need to be addressed immediately.
When you have a team that’s lost Caitlyn Clark for extended periods due to multiple soft tissue injuries, Cydney Coulson to a torn ACL, Ari McDonald to a broken foot, and now potentially Sophie Cunningham to a knee injury caused by reckless play. At what point does the league office step in and admit there’s a systemic problem? These aren’t just random accidents or bad luck.
They are the inevitable result of allowing a culture of overly physical play to flourish without proper consequences. The way Bria Hartley has been allowed to continue her dirty tactics all season long without facing meaningful punishment is exactly what’s wrong with WNBA officiating and player discipline. This is a player who has a documented history of dangerous plays, including pulling Angel Ree down by her ponytail and repeatedly making reckless contact with opponents throughout the year.
yet somehow she’s still on the court making the same dangerous plays that injured Sophie today. When player safety takes a backseat to letting the game flow naturally, you end up with preventable injuries that could derail entire seasons. What makes this injury even more tragic is knowing how much Sophie means to this fever organization.

Beyond just her oncourt contributions, she’s been the one player willing to stand up for Caitlyn Clark when opponents try to intimidate or target her. She’s brought a defensive intensity and competitive fire that transformed Indiana’s identity from soft to scrappy. Her leadership in the locker room and ability to connect with younger players has been invaluable during a season filled with adversity and challenges.
Losing that presence, even temporarily, creates a void that goes far beyond statistics and box scores. The financial implications of these injuries also can’t be ignored when you consider how much money the Fever and the league have invested in building around their core group of players. Sophie Cunningham was brought in specifically to provide veteran leadership and defensive toughness during what was supposed to be a breakthrough season for the franchise.
When key players go down with preventable injuries caused by reckless opponents, it doesn’t just hurt the team’s playoff chances, it damages the entire product that fans are paying to watch and support. But let’s shift focus back to the incredible basketball story that unfolded after Sophie’s injury. Because what Kelsey Mitchell accomplished in those final 30 minutes of game time deserves to be studied and celebrated for years to come.
The mental fortitude required to bounce back from a four-point first half and single-handedly carry your team back from a 21-point deficit is something that separates true superstars from ordinary players. Mitchell didn’t just score points, she completely took over every aspect of the game when it mattered most.
The way Mitchell attacked the basket and drew fouls in the second half was particularly impressive as she went to the free throw line 12 times and converted 11 of those attempts. That kind of aggression and ability to get to the charity stripe is crucial during comeback situations because it not only puts points on the board, but also gets opposing players in foul trouble.
Mitchell’s basketball IQ was on full display as she recognized what the game situation required and adjusted her approach accordingly. The three-point shooting display that Mitchell put on during the comeback was absolutely mesmerizing to watch unfold. After missing all three of her attempts from beyond the ark in the first half, she went five for five from three-point range in the second half and overtime.
Those weren’t just open looks either. Several of them were contested shots with defenders draped all over her during crucial possessions. The confidence and shotmaking ability required to perform at that level under pressure is what separates elite players from everyone else. Mitchell’s performance also highlighted just how much the Fever have missed Caitlyn Clark’s playmaking and scoring punch throughout this extended absence.
While Mitchell has been fantastic all season long, having to carry this level of offensive responsibility night after night is simply unsustainable for any single player. The fact that she’s been averaging over 20 points per game while Clark has been sidelined shows just how much her role has expanded and how well she’s responded to increased expectations.
The supporting cast that stepped up around Mitchell during this comeback also deserves individual recognition for their contributions. Odyssey Sims looked like she’d been playing in Indiana’s system for years rather than just a few days. Making smart decisions with the basketball and providing the kind of veteran presence that championship teams need.
Her ability to get to the rim and finish through contact was crucial during several key stretches of the rally. Aaliyah Boston’s all-around performance was perhaps her most complete showing of the entire season as she impacted winning in every possible category. The 13 rebounds were obviously important, but her five assists showed an improved ability to create for teammates from the post position.
Her defensive presence with two steals and two blocks helped turn the tide when Connecticut was threatening to extend their lead even further. Lexi Hall’s clutch three-pointer in overtime was the kind of shot that defines careers and creates lasting memories for players and fans alike. The pressure of that moment with the game and potentially the season hanging in the balance is something that most players would struggle to handle.

Hall not only made the shot but did it with a kind of confidence and composure that suggests she’s ready for bigger moments in the future. The coaching decisions that Stephanie White made during this comeback were equally impressive and showed significant growth in her ability to manage in-game situations.
The timeout usage was strategic and welltimed, giving her players opportunities to regroup without disrupting positive momentum. Her substitution patterns kept fresh legs on the court while maintaining continuity in terms of chemistry and execution. White’s postgame comments about being speechless watching Mitchell’s performance perfectly captured what everyone was feeling after witnessing something truly special.
The fact that she was willing to let Mitchell play through his early struggles and continue taking shots showed the kind of trust in her players that great coaches demonstrate. That faith was rewarded with one of the most memorable individual performances in franchise history. Looking at the bigger picture, this victory represents more than just one regular season win for the Indiana Fever.
It’s proof that this team has the character and resilience necessary to overcome any obstacle that gets thrown in their path. Championship teams are built on moments like these, where adversity brings out the best in everyone and creates lasting bonds that carry over into future success. Regardless of what happens with Sophie’s injury, this game will be remembered as one of the most remarkable individual and team performances in recent WNBA history.
Kelsey Mitchell’s 38-point explosion, the largest comeback in franchise history, and the way this depleted roster came together in the face of adversity created the kind of sports moment that reminds you why we love basketball in the first place. Sometimes the most inspiring victories come not from perfect circumstances, but from finding a way to overcome impossible odds through sheer force of will and determination.