New York Liberty vs. Indiana Fever: Picks, Predictions and Odds

Partner Authors Updated: Jul 05 2024 20:32

It will be a battle between the best team in the WNBA and the biggest name in the WNBA when the New York Liberty and Indiana Fever square off on Saturday in Indiana.

The Liberty come in with a 17-3 record, leaving them one game clear of the Connecticut Sun in first place in the league.

Led by Caitlin Clark, the Fever are slowly making improvements on the heels of some positively dismal seasons but an 8-13 record is still not where they want to be at this point in the 2024 campaign.

A real push for a playoff spot is unlikely to begin against a New York team that has won five in a row.

The Liberty have lost just once in the regular season (not including the Commissioner’s Cup final against the Minnesota Lynx) since May 25 and that was on the road against a Phoenix team headlined by Diana Taurasi and Britney Griner.

Can Clark and company hand them another loss or are the Liberty on their way to once again finding the win column? Let’s take a look at the odds and best bets to be made on Saturday.

New York Liberty vs. Indiana Fever betting picks and predictions

New York Liberty -9.0 (-110)

While opponents have kept it close with the Liberty on occasion, they frequently take care of business without too much trouble. In June, they won seven games by double-digits and two others by at least eight points, which is around the spread for Saturday’s contest.

Nobody has felt New York’s wrath quite like Indiana. In three head-to-head matchups already this season the Fever have lost 102-66, 91-80 and 104-68.

In the two especially lopsided setbacks, they were out-rebounded by 14 the first time and by 11 the second time. They are 21-for-73 (28.8 percent) from three-point range through three contests against New York.

Two of Clark’s worst performances as a rookie have come against New York. On May 17, she went 2-for-8 from the floor and 1-for-7 from three-point land for a mere nine points. On June 3, the Iowa product was kept to a season-low three points on a 1-for-10 effort from the field (again 1-for-7 from distance).

Pretty much regardless of the opposition at the other end of the court, New York has been the league’s most dominant team in 2024. It is certainly the hottest right now.

Look for head coach Sandy Brondello’s Liberty squad to remain on a roll and hand Indiana another lopsided loss.

Under 171.5 Total Points (-110)

It is true that high-scoring affairs have been the norm between these two teams so far this year, but there are reasons to think the story will be different on Saturday.

First of all, New York has been required to do almost all of the heavy lifting for the overs to cash. As mentioned above, the Fever have twice been limited to fewer than 70 points by the Liberty.

Moreover, New York has really been putting the clamps down on defense of late. Its last three opponents have scored 75, 75 and 67 points.

Although the Fever are accustomed to scoring more than that, it is likely that they will slow down the pace of this game and be content to engage in a lower-scoring tilt.

After all, Indiana knows it is the inferior team in this matchup and the fewer possessions there are, the better it is for the underdogs. It has already been proven that Indy cannot keep up when it allows New York to score more than or even close to 100 points.