Washington Mystics vs. Indiana Fever – 7/25/20 WNBA Pick, Odds, and Prediction

The Indiana Fever and Washington Mystics meet Saturday in WNBA action at the IMG Academy

The Indiana Fever only won 13 games last season, but they finished the season by splitting their last 14 games. The Fever have a new head coach in Marianne Stanley, and they return most of a roster that showed improvement as the season carried out. Kelsey Mitchell was the Fevers leading scorer last season and was second in the league with 79 made threes. Candice Dupree is the definition of consistency and Tiffany Mitchell is starting to come into her own as nearly a double-digit scorer. Victoria Vivians returns from a knee injury and Teaira McCowan has a chance to build on what was a solid rookie season. The Indiana Fever may not be the sexy fun team in the WNBA to talk about, but there’s enough pieces in place to finally snap this playoff drought. 

The Washington Mystics are coming off their first WNBA championship where they beat the Connecticut Sun in five games. Usually the champs return and make another run at the hardware, but the pandemic has shaken things up in Washington, and the Mystics are expected to be without Elena Delle Donne, Natasha Cloud, Kristi Toliver and LaToya Sanders. That’s a lot of production to replace, including an irreplaceable player in Delle Donne, who is one of the best players in the league. The good news is the Mystics still have Emma Meesseman, who was the WNBA Finals MVP last season and one of the top defenders in the league in Ariel Atkins. Aerial Powers is also coming off the best season of her career and is entering her prime at 26 years old. Still, the Mystics aren’t nearly as scary as they were a few months ago.

The Fever are 2-5-1 ATS in their last 8 vs. Eastern Conference and 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games overall. The Mystics are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 vs. Eastern Conference and 9-3-1 ATS in their last 13 home games. The over is 8-3-1 in Fever last 12 overall. The over is 5-1 in Mystics last 6 overall. The Fever are 1-3-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings in Washington and 1-3-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings.

The Washington Mystics aren’t a pushover just because they’re missing a massive chunk of their roster, but they’re also a team missing a ton of firepower and have a target on their back after winning the title. The Indiana Fever have a new coach, but they return nearly their entire roster from a year ago, have talent and should have fire in their belly to snap a long playoff drought. This is a game the Fever should smell blood in the water and want to start the season off on a strong note. This feels like a game the Fever should win to send an early message.

I’ll back the Fever in this game.