As the Indiana Fever and Phoenix Mercury prepared to run it back once again on Wednesday night, Caitlin Clark’s teammate Myisha Hines-Allen had an important message for her side.

“It just shows that we’re gonna stick together,” she said in her pre-game appearance. “We’re gonna have each other’s backs. I’m gonna stand up for all my teammates, doesn’t matter who it is. That’s just who I am.

“We’re gonna have each other’s backs — that’s the biggest thing. And just sending a message around that we’re gonna have each other’s backs.”

There is a reason Hines-Allen said this.

In their game on Monday night, the Fever held a lead with less than eight minutes left in the fourth quarter. That’s when Caitlin Clark and DeWanna Bonner found themselves tangled while fighting for position in the backcourt. But what should have been a regular physical battle quickly spiraled after a whistle was called on Clark.

But with tensions rising, Alyssa Thomas stepped in to calm things down. However, before she could separate Clark and Bonner, Hines-Allen got involved as well and was seen exchanging words with the Mercury star. This prompted the officials to quickly step in and assess a double technical foul on both Thomas and Hines-Allen.

Now, around the same time, CC learned she was assessed a foul as she was seen shouting, “WHAT THE F*** DID I DO?” in visible frustration. And that reaction earned her another whistle, resulting in her fifth technical foul of the season and an automatic $1,000 fine under league rules.

“I got a technical for clapping. We should all just go on the calendar now and pick a game that I’m going to be suspended for if I’m gonna get technicals for clapping,” Caitlin Clark said in the post-game interview. “I’m gonna play with emotion, I’m gonna play with passion, and if they’re going to give me a technical foul for clapping, then so be it. That’s their choice.”

But if only the whole mess stopped after Clark picked up her tech, because another confrontation was already brewing nearby.

After Bonner realized what unfolded between Thomas and Hines-Allen, she returned to the scene to voice her frustration about Indiana’s aggressiveness. That quickly drew the attention of Sophie Cunningham, who stepped in and immediately pointed directly at Bonner as the two started exchanging words. This escalated to the point where security personnel from both teams had to step in and separate players before things got any further out of hand.

So by the time order was restored, officials handed out another double technical foul to Bonner and Cunningham.

Yet the drama still wasn’t over…

Within 8 seconds after the game resumed, Hines-Allen was caught shoving Thomas, which prompted officials to assess her second technical foul of the night and an automatic ejection.

Considering the history between DeWanna Bonner and the Fever, this whole messy incident shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. The roots of the tension between them can be traced back to Bonner’s brief and controversial stint in Indiana last season. She arrived as one of the franchise’s biggest offseason acquisitions and was expected to play a major role alongside Caitlin Clark. However, her time with the Fever lasted just nine games. She then took a leave of absence, requested a trade, and eventually found her way back to Phoenix.

But what frustrated her former teammates was that Bonner never offered an explanation for her departure and didn’t even say goodbye.

That unresolved chapter has continued to linger around Indiana ever since, making their confrontation feel like more than just another heated moment in a regular-season game.

But with Caitlin Clark and her teammates set to meet the Mercury again, Hines-Allen has left no room for interpretation, making it clear that Indiana plans to stand united no matter who is involved.

Update: Mercury won the clash against Indiana on Wednesday, 111-109.