Fever fail first real test since losing Caitlin Clark to injury

The Indiana Fever hadn't faced a team over .500 since losing guard Caitlin Clark to a quad injury after their New York Liberty loss at the end of May. They were 2-2 without Clark headed into their contest against the Atlanta Dream.

Now, they're 2-3. Atlanta managed to dismantle the Fever with sound defense, an organized offense led by Jordin Canada and Allisha Gray, and a dismantled game from Indiana all around. It was unlike what we've seen from the Fever since they got Aari McDonald to help run things on the floor off the bench, and since Kelsey Mitchell had begun to heat up.

With no Clark, and a lack of shot making from Aliyah Boston - who has been absurdly efficient this season - it was hard to see a way for Indiana to squeeze out a win in the key Commissioner's Cup matchup against the Dream.

The loss revealed the most obvious thing about Indiana that we can point out - they're badly missing Clark in their offense, and they have to hope that she's ready for their big game against the Liberty this Saturday.

No Clark a major blow to Indiana in first real test

While the Fever have several veterans with the ability to heat up quickly - DeWanna Bonner, Natasha Howard, and Mitchell, for example - they looked bogged down by Atlanta's on-ball pressure the entire game and their front court featuring Bri Jones. This was evidence of just how much Clark is missed in this offense.

With her on the court, it's hard to commit so much of your defense to collapsing in on whoever is driving with the ball - she's always going to be a threat, so defending her has to be calculated. Instead, Atlanta managed to force 11 turnovers on the Fever.

READ MORE: Kelsey Mitchell wins Player of the Week as Fever rolls without Caitlin Clark

With their loss to the Dream, the Fever are also in a pickle within the Commissioner's Cup standings. Prior to the Dream game, they had a fighting chance to catch up to the top team in the Eastern Conference, the Liberty. Now, they're headed back to Indiana to face New York who has a ridiculous advantage in the standings due to point differential.

It was always going to be a stretch to hope that the Fever could keep up their momentum against a team like Atlanta, who rest a lot of their success on their defensive prowess.