With time running out in the fourth quarter Sunday afternoon, Alanna Smith seemed to have a clear path to the basket.

But as the Minnesota Lynx center scooped the ball to shoot a layup that would pull the home team back within a single point, Indiana Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell flashed across the paint and blocked the shot.

The play still wasn’t over, however. The ball was careening toward the baseline, and Minnesota was about to retain possession until Fever center Aliyah Boston lunged to make an athletic save.

Boston deflected the ball back to Mitchell, the Lynx were forced to foul and two Mitchell free throws later Indiana clinched what became an 81-74 victory that provided evidence of just how much this young team has grown since it’s 2-9 start.

“Even when we get down and things don’t go our way, we still find a way to win,” Indiana rookie guard Caitlin Clark. “… I think just, obviously, you can start to tell we’re just getting more comfortable overall playing with each other, our chemistry. We know where our teammates are gonna be, and then also just setting our teammates up for success, putting them in positions that they can be successful.”

This was not a typical Fever win.

Indiana (11-14) was unable to push its preferred frenetic pace against the WNBA’s top defensive team and failed to score a single fast-break point.

Instead, the Fever consistently fed the ball to Boston in the paint until its guards finally got going in the fourth quarter.

Boston finished with 17 points and 16 rebounds, shooting 8-of-11 from the floor and leading the way for 40 Indiana points in the paint.

Clark found the going more difficult for much of the afternoon.

Playing at the Target Center – where she won two Big Ten Tournament titles at Iowa – and against the team she grew up cheering for, Clark struggled with her shot throughout the game.

She was 5-of-17 overall and just 2-for-11 from 3-point range, turned the ball over six times and saw her five-game double-double streak come to an end.

But Clark scored 10 points in the fourth quarter as the Fever erased a seven-point deficit and finished with 17 points, six assists and two steals.

“Really proud of our team in the fourth quarter,” Indiana head coach Christie Sides said. “We made some adjustments in the fourth. It really paid off for us.”

Playing its fourth straight game without injured Olympian Napheesa Collier, Minnesota (16-8) forged a 38-38 deadlock after a physical first half.

Bridget Carleton – who was 5-of-10 from 3-point range and finished with 17 points – keyed a 10-3 run to end the third quarter, and the Lynx led 60-53 entering the final period.

Clark – who was called for a technical foul after making inadvertent contact with a defender’s face during Minnesota’s third-quarter run — announced her intentions with a 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter before Carleton matched her on the other end.

A defensive three-second violation led to a Clark technical free throw, and Mitchell – who had a game-high 21 points – and Katie Lou Samuelson drained back-to-back 3-pointers to tie the game just two minutes into the period.

The Lynx regained the lead with a pair of free throws before Samuelson and Clark answered with baskets in the paint to put Indiana in front 67-65 with 6:44 to go.

At that point, the rookie guard had scored or assisted on all 14 Indiana points during the final period.

“She’s gonna do what she needs to do,” Sides said. “She’s gonna find her teammates when they’re open. What she does is she draws so much attention. Regardless of whether she’s making shots, she’s drawing that attention which is able to free up a lot of our other players.”

Smith put Minnesota back ahead with a 3-pointer, but Mitchell answered with a 22-foot jumper for the Fever.

After Kayla McBride missed a 3-pointer for the Lynx, Mitchell rebounded Clark’s errant 3-point attempt and scored to put Indiana up 71-68 with 4:43 remaining.

Cecilia Zandalasini’s 3-pointer again tied the score before Boston scored back-to-back buckets off assists from Clark and Samuelson to give the Fever a four-point lead for the first time at the 2:03 mark.

McBride pulled the Lynx back within a point with a 3-pointer, but Clark’s two free throws pushed the lead to 77-74 with 1:43 to play.

That’s where it stood when Smith drove the lane with 22.1 seconds left and Mitchell and Boston combined for their game-winning plays.

“I try to stay in rhythm based on how the game is going and what we need as a group,” Mitchell said. “Obviously, I want to stay aggressive, but I just try to fill the gaps based on how these guys play and be utilized on that back side just in case they need me. And, at that point, just find whatever play you can make.”

NaLyssa Smith also finished in double figures with 11 points for Indiana.

Alanna Smith led the Lynx with 18 points and eight rebounds. McBride added 11 points, and Courtney Williams finished with 10 points and seven assists.

The Fever will travel to Dallas on Wednesday for their final game before the All-Star and Olympic break.