In the second period of their game against the Colden State Valkyries, Clark scored on a solo effort. However, she went down after Kiah Stokes made contact while trying to defend, and the 24-year-old immediately looked at the official for a call. “Clark wanted the whistle, gets the bucket. The fans wanted it, too,” said the USA Network broadcaster as Clark limped back to defend. After the game, the guard explained why she was upset with the ref for calling the foul.
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“I got kneed right in the quad. Like, that hurts. Like, the ref can’t miss that,
and then I have to play with a contusion in my leg the rest of the game. Like, it’s ridiculous,” Clark said in the post-game press conference.
When the reporter asked if the official gave her any explanation for not calling the play, Clark said: “She said I initiated contact, which is fine. You can’t knee me in the leg, knock me over.“
Caitlin Clark’s safety has been a matter of intense debate over the past few weeks after Alyssa Thomas’ flagrant 2 foul on her went uncalled. That revived the conversation of Clark being on the receiving end of multiple hard fouls over her WNBA career.
The fact that she later got injured after Valériane Ayayi defended a jumper by Clark and took away her space to land only added fuel to that debate. The resulting fallout saw Thomas face threats on social media, prompting players, coaches, the league and Clark herself to come to Thomas’ defense, and a debate that’s still raging.
Fortunately, it wasn’t that serious this time, but Clark did vent her frustration right in front of the official after she called a foul on the very next play on Clark’s teammate Aliyah Boston.
Boston made contact with Valkyries Veronica Burton when she jumped for the ball that came off the rim, and Burton hit the floor due to the collision. Referee Gerda Gatling immediately called the play, causing Clark to go ballistic.
However, the official let Clark vent before the Indiana guard walked off to the locker room. She later returned to the game in the third quarter and finished the game. “We’ll just rub it out. It’ll be fine. Good old knuckles on it and call it a day,” Clark said afterward.
Caitlin Clark finished with 13 points, 6 assists, and 3 rebounds while shooting 4-14 from the field and 1-8 from the three-point line. The entire team struggled against an elite Valkyries defense as the Fever lost 88-75. While the referees’ decisions grabbed some spotlight, it was a poor defensive show from the Fever.
They let the Valkyries shoot 52% from the field, largely letting them penetrate the paint. Clark continued to play under a minute restriction, with 26 minutes in this game. It remains unclear when she will be able to return in full flow.