Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark shared her thoughts after getting fouled hard by Chicago Sky guard Chennedy Carter in the Fever’s win on Saturday, June 1.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” Clark said. “But it’s just like, ‘Respond, calm down and let your play do the talking.’ It is what it is. … Go make the free throw and then execute on offense.”
Carter knocked Clark over prior to the Fever taking the ball out from underneath the basket even though the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft didn’t have the ball.
Entire league out to get Caitlin Clark 😂 pic.twitter.com/aZHN9FUhgN
— WNBA Rookie Watch (@WNBARookieWatch) June 1, 2024
Carter refused to answer any questions about Clark after the loss.
Chicago Sky's Chennedy Carter refused to speak on her foul against Caitlin Clark. pic.twitter.com/7f5QMS2KJT
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 1, 2024
The win on Saturday was the second of the season for the Fever, who have gotten off to a slow start (2-8) through their first 10 games.
Clark didn’t have her best game on Saturday, but she showed poise by not overreacting to Carter’s hard foul.
Instead, the Fever guard made a few winning plays down the stretch for her team.
First, Clark started a fast break that led to a great finish by guard Kelsey Mitchell with over five minutes left in the game.
"That was pretty!"
Caitlin Clark to Erica Wheeler to Kelsey Mitchell for the and- 1! pic.twitter.com/m3kO6SGDc3
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 1, 2024
Later in the fourth quarter, Clark muscled her way to the basket for a layup, two of her 11 points on the day.
Caitlin Clark muscles her way through traffic and banks it in 💪 pic.twitter.com/lR1KEE8SEN
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 1, 2024
The University of Iowa product finished the win over Chicago with 11 points, (4-for-11 from the field and 2-for-9 from 3), eight rebounds and six assists.
Carter had a big game off the bench for the Sky, scoring 19 points (8-for-12 from the field) to lead the Sky. However, it wasn’t enough to earn the win, and Chicago is now 3-4 on the season.
Earlier this week, Fever coach Christie Sides spoke about her frustration with the officiating of games.
“We’ve just got to get better with the officiating,” Sides said. “We’ve got to get some of those calls. I feel like they’re getting some calls that’s happening on our end as well and I just don’t feel like we’re getting some of those.”
Clark also spoke out about the officiating, sharing that she believes she’s taking a ton of contact.
“I feel like I’m getting hammered,” Clark said after Thursday’s loss to the Seattle Storm.
This season, Clark is averaging 16.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game while shooting 37.6 percent from the field and 31.0 percent from 3. While Clark may not be shooting the ball super efficiently, she’s certainly made an impact on Indiana early in the season.
