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Fever hand Shock first loss of the season

Jun 17, 2007 - 1:49 AM AUBURN HILLS, Michigan (Ticker) -- The Indiana Fever are out to prove that they're the best team in the WNBA.

Tamika Catchings had 26 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Fever past the Detroit Shock, 77-67, on Saturday in a battle of the top two teams in the league.

Tammy Sutton-Brown had 17 points and K.B. Sharp added 13 for the Fever (9-2), who handed the Shock their first loss of the season.

Deanna Nolan and Katie Feenstra added 14 points apiece for Detroit, which fell behind, 23-13, after one quarter and never recovered. Detroit (7-1) had won nine consecutive games dating to last season.

The Shock clearly missed the presence of forward Cheryl Ford, who entered Saturday tied for the team lead with 14 points per game. Ford did not play after injuring her knee in a collision with teammate Swin Cash at the end of Friday's win over Connecticut.

This was the first meeting between the teams since last year's playoffs, when Detroit swept Indiana in the first round en route to its second WNBA title.