Flagrant foul on Caitlin Clark sparks chippy moment in Fever-Sun, officiating rant from coach Stephanie White

The first question during the Indiana Fever’s press conference following their 88-71 win over the Connecticut Sun on Tuesday was directed at Caitlin Clark. It referenced a third-quarter incident in which she received a technical foul after being hit in the face by Jacy Sheldon and knocked to the ground by Marina Mabrey. 

Fever coach Stephanie White intercepted it and said she would handle the officiating questions. Did she ever. “Everybody’s getting better, except the officials,” White said during a multi-minute rant that called out Tuesday’s refs for losing control of the game and criticized the league and officials as a whole for failing to improve. 

Clark and Sheldon have history dating back to their collegiate rivalry in the Big Ten, when they played for Iowa and Ohio State, respectively. There was also a contentious game between the Fever and Sun earlier this year in which Sheldon was involved in multiple incidents that ended with Fever players — Sydney Colson and Sophie Cunningham — leaving the game with injuries. 

It was no surprise that Tuesday’s contest was chippy right from the start. The animosity boiled over in the third quarter when Clark was trying to operate against Sheldon near the top…