Tamika Must Lead for Fever to Catch Up

The Indiana Fever are on the brink of elimination from the WNBA playoffs. It will be up to Tamika Catchings to yank them back.

Indiana opened the Eastern Conference Finals Wednesday night in Detroit with a thud, falling to the Shock 72-56 after losing an 11-point lead.

Catchings, who had scored a combined 50 points in the Fever's first-two playoffs games finished with nine.

And while Indiana is much less "The Tamika Catchings Show" than it used to be, she is still the engine.

"Over the years, a lot of people have come at me and said, 'You need to step up', and I've always tried to do that," Catchings said Tuesday.

Indiana finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference and is seeking its first trip to the WNBA Finals. After losing Wednesday, the Fever need to win two in a row at home to get there.

If they do, it's Catchings' destiny to lead the way.

"If the team needed points, I gave them points; if they needed rebounds, I've gotten rebounds. I've tried to get the ball to the right person, block shots, whatever," Catchings said.

But the one-player-fits-all model has changed for the Fever and for Catchings. Instead, there's more balance, more talent and perhaps her best chance yet to get a shot at an elusive title.

Shooting guard Katie Douglas is in Indiana now, her second season after being traded from Connecticut, a veteran presence and someone to remove some of the offensive pressure. Douglas and Catchings have shared the scoring load, averaging 17.6 and 15.1 points during the regular-season respectively.

Inside Tammy Sutton-Brown and Ebony Hoffman have blossomed. Tamecka Dixon, who spent nine of her 13 WNBA seasons with the Los Angeles Sparks, is a source of stability, while the backcourt has been bolstered by the platooning of point guard Tully Bevilaqua and rookie Briann January.

It is a complete picture. One that Catchings hopes leads to a title.

For all her stellar play, Catchings plays in the shadow of some of the league's biggest names, such as Diana Taurasi, Candace Parker, Lisa Leslie. It's not a new thing for her.

She was part of the "Three Meeks" at Tennessee, but Chamique Holdsclaw was the biggest name of the bunch.

Even now, she is outshined by another Tennessee star in Parker.

But her career has been no less distinguished, save for a WNBA championship.

In eight active pro seasons, she's averaged 16.5 points, been selected to five All-Star teams, led the Fever to six postseasons appearances and has been named the WNBA's Defensive Player of the Year in 2005 and 2006.

The two-time Olympic gold medalist has finished among the top three in balloting for the WNBA MVP Award four times, and likely will end up again there this season.

She worked hard to recover from a torn Achilles tendon sustained during the 2007 playoffs, an injury that carried over into the 2008 season. And she has scored in every game of her pro career.

"Am I a little hidden?" Catchings said. "I don't really look at it like that. I think it's great for the league to have players like Candace and Diana and Lisa, to build off that hype.

"Candace is getting the props she deserves," Catchings said. "I love to play, I love what I do, and if people give me props for that, great. If they don't, that's great, too."

But if they could give her props while she's winning her first title?

"Oh yeah, that's all I really, really want."

Catchings said the league championship is like a steak sitting in front of you and you haven't been allowed to dig in.

And it's the only thing she hasn't won – after winning championships in high school, college, overseas and Olympic gold medals.

"At the end of the year, nobody remembers who was the No. 1 seed, or who won the East," Catchings said. "The only thing that matters is who won the championship. At the end, it's about who has the toughness and the chemistry to do it."

It's time for Indiana to call on both.