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The Indiana Fever defeated the Atlanta Dream 87-85 in Game 3 of their first-round series on Thursday at Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Georgia. Indiana punched a ticket to the semifinals, while Atlanta is now eliminated from the playoffs.
Kelsey Mitchell led the Fever with 24 points on 7-for-16 shooting, including 3-for-6 from 3-point range. Odyssey Sims finished with 16 points, eight assists and three steals on 5-for-15 shooting. Aliyah Boston added 14 points, 12 rebounds and six assists on 6-for-11 shooting.
Natasha Howard had 12 points and six rebounds on 6-for-12 shooting, while Lexie Hull scored 10 points on 3-for-7 shooting.
Allisha Gray led the Dream with 19 points and 12 rebounds on 9-for-15 shooting. Jordin Canada finished with 18 points and 10 assists on 8-for-14 shooting. Rhyne Howard scored 16 points on 7-for-18 shooting, including 2-for-8 from 3-point range.
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Brionna Jones added 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists on 5-for-8 shooting. Naz Hillmon chipped in nine points and 10 rebounds on 3-for-8 shooting (2-for-5 on 3-pointers).
The Dream won 80-68 in Game 1 on Sunday in Atlanta, while the Fever won 77-60 in Tuesday's Game 2 in Indianapolis.
Indiana will face either the Las Vegas Aces or the Seattle Storm in a best-of-five semifinal series, which will start on Saturday.
Atlanta Dream vs. Indiana Fever player stats and box score
Atlanta Dream player stats and box score
Indiana Fever player stats and box score
Atlanta Dream vs. Indiana Fever game summary
The Indiana Fever had a 29-27 lead over the Atlanta Dream at the end of the opening quarter. Kelsey Mitchell scored 11 points on 3-for-5 shooting to lead Indiana.
Atlanta outscored Indiana 29-20 in the second quarter to take a 56-49 lead into the halftime break. Jordin Canada led the Dream with 13 points and five assists on 6-for-9 shooting in the first half. Allisha Gray added 10 points and nine rebounds on 5-for-8 shooting, while Brionna Jones had 10 points on 4-for-6 shooting.
Mitchell's game-high 19 points on 5-for-10 shooting (3-for-4 on 3-pointers) led the Fever in the first half. Odyssey Sims added nine points and three assists, while Lexie Hull had eight points.
The Fever outscored the Dream 20-17 in the third period. After three quarters, Atlanta held a four-point lead (73-69).
In the fourth quarter, Brianna Turner's putback layup tied the game at 80 with about three minutes remaining. After Atlanta scored five straight points, Indiana scored six straight points. The Fever reclaimed the lead (86-85) on Aliyah Boston's layup with 7.4 seconds left.
In the following possession, Hull stole the sideline inbound pass. Sims then went 1-for-2 from the free-throw line to give Indiana a two-point cushion. The Dream could not capitalize on the other end, as Jones missed a desperation 3-point shot at the buzzer.
