The Indiana Fever had their home opener against the Connecticut Sun on Friday night as the Fever debuted a new era of basketball. New head coach Christie Sides and 2023 number one overall draft pick Aliyah Boston took the court for the first time.
The Fever nearly pulled off a terrific comeback as they cut the Sun lead down to three with under two minutes to go, but they came up short and lost 70-61. For a young team with a new coach, though, it was a solid opening game in front of a good crowd.
In that crowd was another prominent Indiana coach — Indiana Pacers assistant coach Lloyd Pierce. He has been to a few Fever games in recent seasons.
Pierce, who joined the Pacers staff under Rick Carlisle in 2021, sat courtside with his daughter. He joked at halftime that it was past her bedtime, but they stayed until late in the action.
Pierce has been the lead assistant for Indiana for two seasons. Per ESPN, the team has gone 6-9 when Pierce has filled in as head coach.
The Fever are now 0-1 but already look like a much better team than last season. Boston finished with 15 points in her WNBA debut. For more on the Fever, click here.
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