Indiana Fever standout Caitlin Clark exited Wednesday’s 111-109 defeat to the Phoenix Mercury with a back injury, capping a tense night marked by several disputed moments — most notably a loose-ball battle in which Phoenix’s Alyssa Thomas made contact with Clark’s neck with her fist.
No foul was assessed to Thomas during the sequence, but after reviewing the play following the game, the WNBA upgraded the incident to a Flagrant Foul 2 and handed Thomas a one-game suspension for “recklessly making contact with her fist to the throat area of [Clark],” the league said Thursday.
Fever president Kelly Krauskopf responded Thursday after the league announced Thomas’ suspension:
“Player safety should be paramount in our league,” Krauskopf said. “We appreciate the WNBA’s review of last night’s incident and the action taken. Right now our focus is on Caitlin and our entire team as we prepare for Saturday.”
Clark’s status moving forward remains uncertain. Fever coach Stephanie White said after the game that she did not yet have an update, but emphasized Indiana would be “careful” with Clark given that it is a “long season.” The Fever return to the court Saturday against the Los Angeles Sparks on CBS.
White, visibly angry, also criticized both Thomas and the officiating crew while forcefully defending her star guard. She described Thomas’ actions as “egregious and utterly disrespectful” and said Clark absorbed “two cheap shots” during the game.
The first incident occurred with a little less than seven minutes remaining in the second quarter. Clark attempted to attack the basket, but got tangled with Lexi Held’s foot and went down. After a short scramble, Clark recovered the ball and managed to send it out to Aliyah Boston, who missed a 3-point attempt. The broadcast showed the sequence live as it unfolded:
On replay, Thomas appeared to drive her knee into Clark’s thigh while Clark was down, then make contact with Clark’s neck using her fist.
“I just saw it. I’m not sure if it had any impact on her health or not, but it was egregious,” White said. “The fact that it was a no-call. I heard about it at halftime. I brought it to the attention of the officials at halftime, yet we still had 11 fouls in the fourth quarter to their two? They still shot 24 free throws in the second half?
“Number one, you gotta call it. It’s absolutely egregious and utterly disrespectful,” White continued. “And then number two, you’re aware of what happened two nights ago, and that shit still happens? Absolutely unacceptable. Absolutely unacceptable. And the reckless closeout that they actually reviewed? And the foot still comes down on the defender’s foot that wasn’t upgraded? Absolutely disrespectful. We have a generational talent and a WNBA superstar who had two cheap shots right there that weren’t called. And I just say again: absolutely unacceptable.”
A few possessions later, Clark took a pass from Sophie Cunningham in semi-transition and pulled up for 3. Mercury forward Valeriane Ayayi got underneath her and was called for a landing space foul. The officials went to the monitor to review the play, but decided not to upgrade it to a flagrant. Clark was grabbing at her back in the aftermath, but remained in the game at that point.
Wednesday’s incidents came after a physical matchup between the two teams on Monday, which the Fever won. Five players, including Thomas, Clark and DeWanna Bonner — who left the Fever under controversial circumstances last season — were called for technical fouls during that game, and Myisha Hines-Allen was ejected.
Clark checked out of Wednesday’s game and went to the locker room with 5:15 remaining in the third quarter. She did not return, and finished with 19 points and eight assists in 20 minutes, ending her record streak of 20-point, five-assist outings at six games.
“We spent all offseason looking at officiating. All offseason,” White said. “And I still say the one thing that we keep asking for is consistency. She is not called the same way everybody else is called.”
Caitlin Clark blasts refs over technical foul in Fever’s win: ‘You just don’t like competitive basketball’
Jack Maloney
Clark, who was limited to 13 games last season due to an array of lower-body injuries, has dealt with back issues all season. She went to the locker room during their opener to get her back adjusted, and later missed a game against the Portland Fire on May 20 due to her back, even though she had not been listed on the injury report. The Fever were issued a warning by the league, and Clark has since been continually listed as probable, though she has not missed any time since then.
White said she wanted to come out and forcefully stick up for Clark after this game because the contact was “so egregious.”
“The fist in the throat is crazy. It’s crazy. It’s dangerous,” White said. “The landing spot? When you went to review it, and she still comes down on top of another foot? I don’t know. Because to me that’s like a do-over on a test, how do you screw it up again? When you have these things continue to happen time and time and time and time again, eventually it gets frustrating.”
