Aliyah Boston's shot wasn't falling, so she found other ways to help Fever win in front of hometown crowd

Boston Globe

16-07-2025

In front of 'a lot' of her friends and family — she didn't know exactly how many made the short trip to Causeway Street — Boston, who moved to Worcester from the US Virgin Islands at age 12, had an uncharacteristically quiet night.
Prior to Tuesday's contest, she had scored 11 or fewer points in just eight games this season, five of which were part of the WNBA Commissioner's Cup tournament, which the Fever (12-10) won.
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But while she struggled to get shots to fall, Boston found other ways to contribute. She pulled down six defensive rebounds and added four assists — second on the Fever behind Caitlin Clark — and was tasked with defending veteran Sun center Tina Charles, who she held to 7-of-19 shooting from the floor.
'She's one of the most selfless people on our team, and she's OK with that,' Fever guard Sophie Cunningham said of Boston. 'And that's what it's going to take to win these types of ball games.'
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Aliyah Boston tries to dribble past pressure from Sun center Tina Charles during Tuesday's win.
Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
Boston, who was not made available to the media after the game, had one point at halftime. She hit her first field goal of the night in the waning seconds of the third quarter, then opened the fourth with another two points. The rest of her 11 points came on free throws; she hit six in the fourth quarter alone.
Fever coach Stephanie White said after the game that she was impressed with Boston's levelheadedness in the face of a difficult scoring night.
'Just trying to … have her stay the course and keep her focused on the things that she could control, and eventually it was going to open up for her,' White said. 'I thought she did a really good job of adjusting and staying locked in and knocking down her free throws when she got that opportunity.'
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Even when Boston wasn't getting many shots up in the early going, White praised her ability to facilitate scoring opportunities for her teammates and called her the 'anchor' of the Fever defense.
Cunningham agreed, noting that even when Boston isn't hitting her shots, opponents have no choice but to treat her as a scoring threat.
'She draws so much attention, people have to guard her,' Cunningham said. 'And when she draws like that, she opens it up for everyone else, like [Howard, who scored 18 points].'
Boston is not one to stay down for long. After she put up a season-low four points against Atlanta in May, she returned two days later to go off for 27 points against the Eastern Conference-leading Liberty.
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After a nine-point outing the last time the Fever faced the Sun in June, Boston put up 17 against the Valkyries, 26 against the Aces, and a staggering 31 against Seattle, all within the span of a week.
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Boston's ability to rebound after tough nights could be crucial for the Fever, who may be without their superstar as they face the Liberty on Wednesday.
In the final minute of Tuesday's game, Clark winced and grabbed at the groin area that has kept her sidelined for two different stints this season. White had no update on the injury after the game, saying the team would need to evaluate the extent of the injury.
Tuesday's game marked the end of a quick but celebratory trip home for Boston, who spent Monday at the State House with her teammates as the governor celebrated the Fever forward's contributions to the sport and lauded her investment in Boston's forthcoming NWSL team, the Legacy.
'Growing up in Worcester and being in Boston, it just made the most sense — and obviously my last name's pretty cool,' Boston said at the State House. 'But honestly, I think being able to invest in a professional league is so important because as a professional athlete, as a professional woman athlete, it's just so crucial to make sure that we have exactly everything that we need and we're taken care of.'
Emma Healy can be reached at