Caitlin Clark propelled the Indiana Fever to a dominant 96-77 win over the Minnesota Lynx on Tuesday. The star playmaker finished with 27 points, seven rebounds, nine assists and four steals, as Indiana led by as many as 29 points.
Clark produced plenty of highlights in the game, including several deep triples. One of her best plays came with 1:23 remaining in the fourth quarter when she connected with Sophie Cunningham for an easy layup.
After Makayla Timpson rebounded a missed shot from the Lynx, she gave the ball to Clark, who quickly pushed the ball up the court for a fast-break play. Seeing Cunningham running to the basket with the defenders behind her, Clark dished a precise bounce pass to her teammate for the two points.
Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images via Reuters Connect
Unfortunately, while the Clark-Cunningham connection was incredible in that moment, the play turned a lot of heads for the wrong reason.
After the assist, the Fever subbed out Clark, Cunningham, Timpson, Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston. With the game out of reach, there was certainly no reason for head coach Stephanie White to keep her best players on the floor and risk them getting injured.
However, fans were not happy with the decision, especially since Clark was close to getting a double-double.
Clark’s assist to Cunningham turned out to be her last dime of the game, and fans expressed disappointment in the comment section of the Fever’s video of the play.
“Annnnnd then she got pulled,” a critic wrote. Another one said, “Couldn’t keep her in for one more assist huh.”
“Pulled Clark with 9 assists denying her a chance for a Double double. But god forbid Kelsey doesn’t get her 20 point streak. Your Org is Trash,” an angry viewer added.
“And again. Stephanie White in her typical vile selfishness takes Caitlin out before she can get a double double. How long do we have endure this malicious coach?” a frustrated supporter shared.
A follower stated, “Stephanie robbed her of another double double! What else is new?”
“White stat managing CC to keep her from another double double & 50 pts generated. Hammon would never do that to A’jay. White just can’t have CC outshine A’ja down the stretch,” a sixth poster noted.
Regardless of the fans’ disappointment, the important thing for the Fever is that they improved to 28-15 on the season, keeping them in contention for a top-four spot in the standings.
