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Dream-Fever Preview

Jul 15, 2010 - 7:29 PM By SAMANTHA PANITCH STATS Writer

Atlanta (14-6) at Indiana (11-7), 7:00 p.m. EDT

The Indiana Fever would like to get back on track at home in order to increase their chances of repeating as Eastern Conference champions.

The Fever will look to avenge their first home loss since May 12 when the Atlanta Dream visit Conseco Fieldhouse on Friday night.

Indiana (11-7) had a seven-game home winning streak snapped with a 77-68 loss to Connecticut on Wednesday. Tamika Catchings had 22 points and nine rebounds, including the 2,000th of her career, and Katie Douglas added 13 points for the Fever.

Catchings, who became the 10th player in league history with 2,000 rebounds, said Indiana needs to put away teams from here on out.

"As we look at the next 16 games (to finish the regular season) and making a playoff push, we need to put ourselves in a position where we're not having to win games at the end," she told the team's official website. "In order to get a cushion, in order to make it to the playoffs, we have to win games now.

"As a team we have to realize that every single day you have to be ready."

The Fever lead fourth-place Connecticut by one-half game in a tightly-packed conference in which all six teams are separated by five games. They will try to avoid losing for the third time in five games when they play the first-place Dream (14-6).

"We have to win," Catchings said. "Everybody has to gut it out and we have to figure out how we're going to win. For me, it's frustrating. It's all of us. It's not just one player. As a team, we have to do better."

Indiana and Atlanta have split two games this season with each team winning at home.

Catchings and Douglas scored 17 points each to lead the Fever to a 94-91 victory in the teams' last game June 19. Angel McCoughtry and Iziane Castro Marques each had 21 points for the Dream, and Sancho Lyttle added 20 points and 20 rebounds.

The Dream hope Lyttle will be back in the starting lineup after missing an 83-81 loss at Minnesota on Wednesday due to the after-effects of a concussion.

In Atlanta's second straight road loss, McCoughtry finished with 25 points and Castro Marques had 20. The Dream's top two scorers went 18 of 43 from the field but coach Marynell Meadors saw another reason.

"We didn't play hard enough in the first half. I think that was the biggest difference in the game," she said, reflecting on 13 turnovers and 13 fouls by her team over the first 20 minutes.

Lyttle's possible return could provide a boost. She is third on the team in scoring with a career-high 14.2 points, and second in the league with 10.6 rebounds per game.

Atlanta is second in the WNBA in scoring with 86.4 points. Indiana has the top defense, allowing only 70.6 points.