Caitlin Clark, Stephanie White Appeared To Call Each Other Out After Game 1

They're not in agreement.

by Chris Rosvoglou

Sep 29, 2026

Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever.

Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images&period;

After dropping Game 1 of their first-round playoff series, Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White and All-Star guard Caitlin Clark had different explanations for what went wrong against the Las Vegas Aces.

The Fever were a mess offensively at times agains the Aces on Sunday. Clark went 6-of-17 from the field for 15 points with six turnovers. Kelsey Mitchell also had a rough game, shooting 4-of-16 for 12 points.

When asked about the Game 1 loss, Clark suggested the Fever ran “sloppy” offensive sets against the Aces.

“We want to play in transition, and obviously when they score 102 points, like, it’s hard for us to kind of get that part of it going,” Clark said. “I think they’re good defenders, but at the same time, we made it hard on ourselves, too. Like, I thought our actions were sloppy. I thought what we were running just wasn’t great and just nobody got an easy or open look.”

Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White talks with Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, during the first half of a game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Phoenix Mercury defeated the Indiana Fever, 111-109.

As for White, she placed the majority of the blame on the Fever’s turnovers.

“I mean, 28 points off of turnovers. It’s, you know, your first line of transition defense is offensive execution, and 28 points off of turnovers and 17 points from the free-throw line – so, you know, those are easy buckets. So we didn’t do our job.”

White also said Indiana’s lack of experience played a role in the Game 1 loss to Las Vegas.

“Certainly, there’s no substitute for experience. Some of them got it a year ago. But oftentimes… you have to be humbled first, right? Like, I mean, that’s life, right? You don’t always learn from the successes. You learn from being humbled. And so I think for us, we know. We felt the difference in the intensity level.”

Backs against the wall for Indiana.

The Aces and Fever will square off this Tuesday night in Game 2. A loss at home would end Indiana’s 2026 season.

The good news for the Fever is they’re 15-7 on their home court this year. The bad news, however, is the Aces own an impressive 16-6 record on the road.

If the Fever are going to force a Game 3 against the Aces, they’ll need Clark and Mitchell to be at their best.

Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on Prime Video.