Officials called Caitlin Clark for her third technical foul call in just nine games of her WNBA rookie season. The Iowa record-setting sensation and No. 1 overall pick by the Indiana Fever got in a heated exchange with Seattle Storm guard Victoria Vivians during a 103-88 loss. Officials called a double technical on both Clark and Vivians in the incident.
Clark hit a deep 3-pointer over Vivians in the second quarter and as the two made their way to the other end of the floor, Clark was visibly animated while staring down her opponent. A slight bump prompted officials to blow their whistles and step in as Fever forward Aliyah Boston directed Clark away from the exchange. If Clark reaches eight technical fouls during the season it results in an automatic one-game suspension.
“Being competitive is who I am, sort of through my whole career,” Clark said postgame. “I think at times there are ways I can probably channel it a little better, but that’s just basketball at the end of the day. That’s never going to change. I’m never going to lose that. I feel like I’m getting hammered.”
Clark has not held back in showing frustration with officials early in her rookie campaign. She picked up a technical foul on Tuesday night in a loss to the Los Angeles Sparks, which prompted Indiana head coach Christie Sides to indirectly call out Clark postgame for her on-floor behavior. Sides was more complimentary of Clark after the Thursday loss.
“She is a competitor, I love her fire,” Sides said. “We just gotta get better with the officiating. We got to get some of those calls.”
Clark scored 20 points while adding three rebounds, nine assists and a block with seven turnovers. The Fever dropped to 1-8 on the season with another loss. Indiana returns to action on Saturday against former LSU star Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky.
Clark broke numerous records during her four-year college career at Iowa where she became a household name. Women’s college basketball reached incredible new heights in popularity this past season with star players, a list headlined by Clark. Iowa drew record TV ratings for the Elite Eight, Final Four and national championship games. Clark became the all-time scoring leader for any NCAA Division I player — men’s and women’s — while also surpassing Lynette Woodard as the all-time scoring leader in major women’s college basketball with 3,951 career points.
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