June 18 (UPI) -- Caitlin Clark and Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White called out officials for missing calls and a lack of control, which they believe led to several scuffles during their win over the Connecticut Sun.
The Fever spoke about the dustups after their 88-71 victory, which clinched a spot in the Commissioner's Cup title game, on Tuesday in Indianapolis. Clark was involved in a third-quarter skirmish. A trio of other players were ejected in the fourth quarter after another melee.
"I think it was pretty obvious that stuff was brewing," White told reporters. "When the officials don't get control of the ballgame, when they allow that stuff to happen .. .this is what happens.
"You've got competitive women, who are the best in the world at what they do, and when you allow them to play physical and allow these things to happen, they are going to compete. They are going to have their teammates backs. It's exactly what you expect out of fierce competition.
"I started talking to the officials in the first quarter and we knew this was going to happen. You could tell it was going to happen. They gotta get control of it. They've gotta be better."
Clark and White simultaneously said "call fouls," when asked to elaborate on how the officials could improve their control of the game. The game had 43 personal foul calls, 22 against the Sun and 21 against the Fever. Clark was one of three players assessed with a technical foul in the third quarter. A total of six technical fouls were issued.
"I thought we were physical on defense," said Clark, who led the Fever with 20 points and six assists.
"I think that's where we lacked in the first half. In the first half, we had moments we were up eight, were were up 10, we were up 12, and we continued to just let them back in the game. ... We kinda got over the hump there and were able to grow our lead in the fourth quarter."
The Fever outshot the Sun 45.6% to 39.1%, including 42.3% to 14.3% from 3-point range. They also held an advantage of 38-27 in rebounds, led by as many as 21 points and never trailed.
Sun forward Aneesah Morrow was given a technical foul for bouncing the ball after a foul call in the second quarter, but the first major incident occurred in next period. That play started with Clark backing down guard Jacy Sheldon with her dribble. Sheldon then appeared to poke Clark in the eye.
Clark stopped and ran into Sheldon before pushing her away. Sun guard Marina Mabrey then walked up to Clark and pushed her to the ground. Mabrey, Clark and Sun center [Tina Charles](https://www.upi.com/topic/Tina_Charles/) were given technical fouls for their roles in the incident. Sheldon was given a flagrant foul type 1.
Crew chief Ashley Gloss said in a [postgame pool report](https://x.com/chloepeterson67/status/1935165499069055405) that Clark received a technical for reacting in an "unsportsmanlike manner toward Sheldon." She said Sheldon's foul was upgraded to a flagrant 1 because her foul was deemed unnecessary and included "wind up and impact" and "contact to the face carries a potential for injury."
Sheldon received a technical and was ejected in the fourth quarter for her role in another dustup. The Sun guard was driving to the basket during a breakaway during that play. Fever guard Sophie Cunningham wrapped her arms around Sheldon and pulled her to the floor.
Sheldon and Sun guard Lindsay Allen then confronted Cunningham, triggering a scrum under the basket. Cunningham was given a flagrant foul type 2 and ejected. Allen also was ejected after receiving a technical.
"The altercation that occurred after the foul by Sophie, we ruled it as a fight," Gloss said. "Sheldon and Lindsay Allen were both escalators in that altercation and therefore they were ejected for fighting."
Clark interjected several times while White answered questions about the officiating, but declined to deeply elaborate about their performances. She also shook her head in agreement when White said that "everybody is getting better, except the officials."
"Every year, when we have our league meetings, we say the same thing, over and over and over and nothing has changed I'm not sure outside of continuing to submit clips, continuing to talk about it," White said.
"Their job is hard. The game has changed so much. Players are faster, they're better, they're stronger, they are as good as they've ever been. They're as athletic as they've ever been. The game is fast now. Things are happening quickly.
"Everybody is getting better, except the officials, so we gotta find a way to remedy it. You've heard every coach talk about it. I don't know what the answer is."
Clark, who has been involved in many physical run-ins through her first two WNBA seasons, said she didn't feel like she had to stand up more for herself because of her high profile.
"At the end of the day, I'm here to play basketball and that's my job," Clark said. "That's what I'm going to do. Honestly, the review took too long for me, I wanted to get playing basketball for me. ... Honestly, I've gotta get our crowd a lot of credit, too. i thought they were tremendous. They were cheering for us. They had our back.
"I'm a passionate player, but at the end of the day, I'm here to play basketball. That's what it is. My game is going to talk. That's all that really matters. I love this game. I'm going to give it everything I have. I think that's what competitors do, you just step right back up to the challenge."
Clark made 6 of 12 shots, including 4 of 6 3-point attempts. She also chipped in two steals and a rebound. Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell and forward Natasha Howard totaled 17 and 16 points, respectively. Howard also logged 12 rebounds.
Charles scored 20 points in the loss.
The Minnesota Lynx (11-1) will host the Fever (6-5) for the Commissioner's Cup crown July 1 in Minneapolis. The winning team will receive $500,000. Coinbase will contribute an additional $120,000 in cryptocurrency to the prize pool.
Clark ranks second in the WNBA with 21.3 points per game, trailing only the 24.4 points per bout scored by Lynx forward Napheesa Collier.
She is shooting 40% from 3-point range and made a league-best 3.7 3-pointers per game through her first six appearances this season. Clark's 8.7 assists per game trail only the 9.0 assists per game by Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas.
Clark and the Fever will take on the Golden State Valkyries (5-6) at 10 p.m. EDT Thursday in San Francisco. The Sun (2-9) will host the Mercury (8-4) at 7 p.m. Wednesday in Uncasville, Conn.
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