When the Indiana Fever took on the Connecticut Sun in their first game of the season, it wasn’t a great encounter. With Caitlin Clark sidelined, the Fever were already struggling to figure out their offense, but what made it even more difficult was the Sun’s physical play. As the game went on, the intensity increased to such an extent that it ended with Sydney Colson injuring her upper left leg, followed by Sophie Cunningham injuring her ankle again. That was how two PGs, part of Stephanie White’s plan to lead a Clark-less Fever, were taken out, all thanks to a team that had one of the worst defensive ratings. So, when the two teams met again for a matchup at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, tensions were already brewing. And, Coach White, witnessing the scuffles firsthand, had some sense of the threat that was coming. But what did she do?

Well, she did everything she could, but it wasn’t quite enough to meet the expectations. It all came to a head late in the third quarter when Jacy Sheldon kept tight pressure on Caitlin Clark. While it was a common sight to see Sheldon grabbing Clark by the hand throughout the game, the moment her physical play stood out was when Clark got poked in the eye.

The pain Caitlin Clark felt was clear from the way she held her eye, but Sheldon wasn’t done yet. She kept coming at Clark’s face until the guard finally shoved her back. Even then, there was no interference from the referees, so Tina Charles stepped in and separated the two. But then Marina Mabrey came out of nowhere and shoved Clark to the ground.

All the while, Head Coach White shouted and stepped in to protect Clark. But clearly, that wasn’t enough. National analyst Rachael DeAmita put it best: “I so wish in that moment when the referee called the fouls, the way that they did with the three, the three technicals and the one flagrant, I so wish that coach Stephanie White would have gotten a technical in that situation. I wish she would have gotten those referees faces and lit them up.”

So while White did everything—from arguing with the refs, showing disagreement over the call involving Mabrey, and trying to keep Clark calm—it wasn’t enough to serve the purpose. Because in the end, Clark, Charles, and Mabrey were issued technical fouls, whereas Sheldon only received a Flagrant 1.

Clearly, we saw Mabrey intentionally push Clark to the ground, so it makes sense why DeAmita suggested White should have grabbed a tech. And picking up a technical isn’t new for White, especially this season. She already picked one up against the Atlanta Dream. Specifically, with 3:01 remaining in the fourth quarter, she was assessed a technical for arguing a call that went against her team’s guard, Aari McDonald. So getting another tech wouldn’t have been a big deal for her.

But while the head coach didn’t do anything in that moment, she made sure the issue was addressed right after the fight. “I’ve seen quite a few dust-ups in the league so far, so I think it’s a league-wide issue,” White said when asked about the officiating. “Bad officiating is bad officiating,” she added, while insisting that the Sheldon incident was clearly a Flagrant 1 foul.

And honestly, she is right. The league has seen way more physical play this season, be it Flagrant 1s or players getting pulled down by their hair, and the refs are just letting it go. Just consider the latest incident with Angel Reese, when Sun’s guard Bria Hartley grabbed Reese by the hair as she attempted to corral a rebound. No doubt, it should’ve been a tech at least, but the refs ruled it as a common foul. That’s how physical the play has been from the bottom-most team in the W this season. But while the refs’ call didn’t serve justice, it was the Indiana Fever point guards who stepped up to defend their team!

Sophie Cunningham uses the skill she learned as a 6-year-old to teach Jacy a lesson!

With both CC and Mabrey out of the game, Sophie got the perfect chance to take revenge—and she did. It all happened in the final minutes of the game when Sheldon was going up for a layup. That’s when Sophie bear-hugged her and took her to the ground. Then, it was Sheldon and Cunningham exchanging words until Lindsay Allen stepped in to separate them.

After nearly a minute of effort, the refs and Allen were finally able to break up the scuffle. In the end, Sheldon, Cunningham, and Lindsay Allen were all ejected for their roles in the fight. But one thing was clear—Cunningham got what she wanted. “Yes, it was intentional. It was absolutely intentional. It was, to me, a payback for what was happening the entire game,” shared DeAmita.

But to be fair, Sophie didn’t make it a dirty play by throwing an elbow or knocking her down with force. Her motive seemed clear – the taekwondo black belt wanted the opponent to learn a lesson, but in a way that wasn’t dangerous. And that tells you everything about the kind of support and loyalty that exists in the Fever locker room. Now what else do you need for a win? Well, with the talent and unity, Fever had sealed an 88–71 win over the Sun, officially punching their ticket to the Commissioner’s Cup. Now, they’ll be taking up the Minnesota Lynx, a team currently sitting at 1–9, next on July 1. So what do you think? Will they win?