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The Indiana Fever did not have to come to Caitlin Clark’s defense this time, but the Golden State Valkyries did not make it easy on her on Thursday night.
Clark, coming off a game that involved a lot of extracurricular activity after the whistle between herself and the Connecticut Sun, was not her usual sharp-shooting self in the Fever’s 88-77 loss to the Valkyries on the road.
Clark shot just 3-of-14 from the field, including her seven failed three-point attempts going through the hoop, as the Fever ended up blowing a 13-point lead in this game to fall to 6-6 on the year.
Clark tallied 11 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, while turning the ball over six times to Golden State.
While Clark struggled from beyond the arc, her teammates did not fare that much better. As a team, the Fever shot just 8-of-29 from three-point land, with Sophie Cunningham, who had been dubbed Clark’s “bodyguard” on the court after the previous game against the Sun, being the only one to hit more than one of her attempts.
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Meanwhile, the Valkyries, led by Kayla Thornton’s 16-point night with five three-pointers, now own the same 6-6 record.
Golden State also saw major contributions off the bench, with Tiffany Hayes (14 points, five assists, three rebounds), Chloe Bibby (12 points, three rebounds, one assist) and Laeticia Amihere (10 points, three rebounds, three assists) all helping their team overcome a double-digit deficit in the end.
For Indiana, Aliyah Boston led the team with 17 points, while Kelsey Mitchell (16 points) and Natasha Howard (13 points) all landed in double digits in that category. However, turnovers played a large factor in the Fever losing their lead, as the Valkyries forced 17 total while committing just seven.
This uncharacteristic performance from Clark specifically comes after getting poked in the eye and being shoved to the ground in a very physical WNBA Commissioner’s Cup game against the Sun on Tuesday night.
Clark was being guarded by Jacy Sheldon when the Sun guard poked her in the eye, and the Fever superstar retaliated by pushing her away.
That led to the Sun’s Marina Mabrey running over and shoving Clark to the ground while her back was turned. A skirmish broke out, but it would not be the end for both teams.
Later in the game, Cunningham wrapped up Sheldon while she was trying to score a basket in the fourth quarter, and it escalated to the point when both players got ejected after their physical altercation underneath the hoop.
Indiana ended up winning the game, 88-71, with Clark totaling 20 points and six assists. It was just her second game since returning from injury.
However, this certainly is not the way Clark or the Fever wanted to respond after that chippy game against the Sun. Their next opportunity to get back in the win column will be Sunday against the Las Vegas Aces.
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