INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Fever coaches jumped to their feet, as did Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese. Feeling as though their franchise player had just received a cheap shot, Fever coaches begged officials to issue a flagrant or technical foul on Sky guard Chennedy Carter, who had knocked rookie Caitlin Clark to the court. Reese, who had been sitting on the bench, cheered on her teammate. This tension had been building throughout Saturday’s game, and it finally boiled over with 15.1 seconds left in the third quarter.
On the previous play, after Clark slapped the ball away from Carter, which led to an Aliyah Boston layup, Clark let Carter hear about it. Carter responded on the other end by sinking a midrange jumper, but that wasn’t enough. Carter then walked up to Clark, yelled at her, and knocked her down. She didn’t make a play on the ball. She didn’t even try to. The ball hadn’t been inbounded yet before Clark was upended.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” Clark said afterward. “But I think it’s just like, ‘Respond, calm down and let your play do the talking.’”
The free throw Clark sank afterward — which wound up the difference in the Fever’s 71-70 victory — spoke volumes.
In a fiery contest featuring familiar faces and rekindled rivalries, Clark and the…
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