The Indiana Fever played their last game of the regular season on Thursday, September 19. This resulted in a 92-21 loss at the hands of the Washington Mystics, which at the end of the day, does not have any impact on the Fever in terms of their positioning in the playoffs.
The Fever had already secured the No. 6 seed even before Thursday’s finale, which meant that this was essentially a non-bearing game for them. This is exactly why a Kelsey Mithcell injury scare in the opening quarter was enough to put head coach Christie Sides on the edge of her seat.
According to Fever beat reporter Chloe Peterson of the Indy Star, Sides admitted shortly after the game that Mitchell’s injury gave her a proper scare.
“Christie Sides says ‘Kelsey is good’ postgame, but that first-quarter scare scared her enough that she made the decision ‘right then that she was going to get ready for Sunday,'” Peterson reported on X, formerly Twitter.
Mitchell appeared to have suffered an ankle/leg/knee injury early in the game after a collision with a Mystics player. She stayed on the ground for a few seconds before slowly getting up. The two-time All-Star stayed in the game in an attempt to shake off the injury but was later forced to exit the contest.
Mitchell returned to the bench after a quick trip to the locker room, but she had a knee brace on her left knee. Her night ended after just five minutes of action, finishing with four points and an assist.
The good news here is that, according to Sides, there is no cause for concern for Mitchell moving forward. At this point, she is fully expected to start on Sunday when the Fever take on the Connecticut Sun in Game 1 of their first-round playoff matchup.