Getting to the foul line is a key part of Caitlin Clark’s offensive bag, which sometimes leads to the rookie superstar embellishing contact from defenders in order to secure a foul call from officials.
Clark was awarded a foul during Monday’s tilt between the Indiana Fever and Connecticut Sun after officials deemed that DiJonai Carrington reached in while trying to steal the ball.
Carrington clearly did not agree with the assessment from the referees, and she made clear that she felt Clark had flopped on the play. After hearing the whistle sound and the official call her number for a foul, Carrington comically mimed Clark’s flopping antics.
Carrington appeared to bump Clark while she tried to drive to the basket, which is what prompted the whistle from the referee. That didn’t sit well with Carrington, who indicated to the official that Clark had sold the contact with a flop.
Ultimately, it was Carrington and the Sun who got the last laugh. They picked up an 89â72 victory on their home court, marking the third time this season they’ve beaten Indiana. Clark was a game-worst -30 and had just 10 points on the night while Carrington led all scorers with 22 points.
Caitlin Clark was back in New York on Sunday night for the Indiana Fever's showdown against the New York Liberty at the Barclays Center, and she treated a group of young basketball fans to an awesome moment after they asked her to snap a photo before the game.
Clark was warming up ahead of tip-off on Sunday when she happily obliged a group of Fever fans who wanted to take a photo with her.
In a moment captured by sports reporter Aliyah Funschelle, the group of kids could be seen beaming after Clark walked over and greeted them with some high fives, and they hopped up and gathered around in order to take the photo.
Indiana has gotten off to a slow start to the season, but they picked up a much-needed win on Saturday against the Chicago Sky in order to improve to 2â8. There was some physical play in that game, including a controversial moment between Clark and Sky's Chennedy Carter, but the 22-year-old didn't let any lingering frustrations stand in the way of a heartwarming moment between herself and some of her biggest fans.
Across 10 games in the WNBA, Clark is averaging 16.9 points, 6.5 assists and 5.4 rebounds.
Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark was on the receiving end of a hard off-ball foul late in the third quarter of Saturdayâs matchup against the Chicago Sky.
On a Fever inbounding play, the Skyâs Chennedy Carter bumped Clark to the floor and was assessed a common away-from-play foul, not a flagrant foul.
Chennedy Carter fouls Caitlin Clark on the inbound. Away-from-play foul called. pic.twitter.com/LodLF5oKMF
Clark appeared shaken up after the play, and when the quarter ended, she appealed to the refs for a harsher punishment for Carter. In an interview after the third quarter, Clark called Carterâs foul ânot a basketball play.â
In the Feverâs loss to the Seattle Storm on Thursday, Clark had complained about the level of physicality in the league.
âI feel like Iâm getting hammered,â Clark said.
WNBA fans weighed in on the hard foul:
Look how hyped Angel Reese is on the bench after Caitlin Clark takes a cheap shot đ pic.twitter.com/GyeG1Q6OhZ
What is wrong with all of these WNBA players. Theyâve turned into Draymond Green level maniacs out here. You could make a compilation at this point and itâs only ten games into Caitlin Clarkâs career pic.twitter.com/QTzJ5DeMTW
â đđđđđ (@PacersStatsMuse) June 1, 2024
Despite Carter's foul, the Fever clinched its first home win of the season, beating the Sky 71â70. Clark finished with 11.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists, shooting 4-of-11 from the field and 2-of-9 from three.
In a postgame press conference, Carter refused to comment on her altercation with Clark.
Good morning, Iâm Dan Gartland. I donât think the Timberwolves are going to complete the comeback, but Iâm glad theyâre at least shortening the break before the NBA Finals.
Over the course of her first seven WNBA games, Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark looked like, well, a rookie. She had a handful of solid offensive performances (three games with at least 20 points) but also her fair share of struggles (like a 2-for-8 shooting night in a loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday).
But in Tuesday nightâs game against the Los Angeles Sparks, Clark had her first true superstar game as a pro, scoring 30 points (on 7-of-16 shooting) with five rebounds, six assists, three steals and three blocks. Sheâs the first rookie since Rhynne Howard in 2022 to have a 30-point game and the first since Sabrina Ionescu in â20 to have 30 points, five assists and five rebounds in a game. Not impressed yet? Clark is the first rookie in WNBA history and just the fourth WNBA player ever to have at least 30 points, five assists, five rebounds, three blocks and three steals in a game.
Thatâs the kind of performance fans expected from Clark when she turned pro, and it was only a matter of time before it became a reality. Every rookie needs some time to adjust to the higher level of play in the pros, and the transition is especially hard for WNBA players who had barely a month between the end of their college season and the start of their rookie year.
But it wasnât all positive news for Clark. For one thing, she also notched seven turnovers. Losing the ball has been the biggest problem for Clark in her brief pro career. She currently leads the WNBA in turnovers per game with 5.3, well ahead of the next closest player, Skyler Diggins-Smith with 4.3. Turnovers are nothing new for Clark. She led the NCAA in that category three times in her college career and ranks third on the all-time list. But if the biggest problem with her game is that she coughs the ball up a little more often than youâd like, thatâs something the Fever can certainly live with.
More disappointingly, the Fever lost the game, 88â82, to drop to 1â7 on the season. Thatâs the second worst record in the league. Only the winless Washington Mystics (0â6) have been worse.
âI think I just played with an aggressive mindset,â Clark told reporters. âI think that was the biggest thingâto play downhill the best I could. We did some good things and then we just kind of shot ourselves in the foot.â
The Feverâs best stretch came immediately after halftime, when they started the third quarter on an 11â0 run to take a 43â37 lead. But the Sparks closed the quarter with an 11â0 run of their own to go up 59â55. The Los Angeles lead swelled to as many as 14 in the fourth quarter as the Fever failed to turn the tide.
âYou don't give yourself a chance ⌠You can't do something right for two and a half quarters and then just stop doing it,â Indiana coach Christie Sides said. âWe were going under some of the screens that were supposed to be going over. We were gambling and getting out of position.
âInstead of us stepping over and stopping them (and) having our teammatesâ back, we're reaching. Thatâs just a lack of discipline.â
The Fever clearly still have a lot to figure out, but the more games like Tuesdayâs that Clark has, the easier the wins will come.
Towns stepped up to keep Minnesota alive vs. Dallas on Tuesday. / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
