Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark took a hard hit to the face from Jackie Young of the Las Vegas Aces and was visibly upset by the absence of a flagrant penalty.
It was a bad night (and last 24 hours) for Clark after putting up a forgettable outing against the Las Vegas Aces. Clark was all over the headlines on Wednesday and couldn’t find her groove in the 86-75 loss to the Aces, shooting 27 percent from the field, recording 16 points, six assists and three rebounds.
INDIANAPOLIS – Caitlin Clark #22 and NaLyssa Smith #1 of the Indiana Fever react in the fourth quarter against the Las Vegas Aces at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on September 11, 2024. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
The rookie’s worst moment of the night, at least for her, came in the third quarter when Clark took an inadvertent elbow to the face from Aces guard Jackie Young.
As she grimaced on the hardwood court at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Caitlin made a stern plea to the referees, hoping to persuade them to call a Flagrant 1 foul on Young. However, the referees allowed the game to continue, much to Clark’s dismay.
During her recent game, Clark had her worst performance since her debut as a rookie. She scored only 3 points and had a shooting percentage of just 10 percent. Some speculate that her public support for Kamala Harris may have been a distraction. Although Clark didn’t explicitly endorse Harris, ‘liking’ Taylor Swift’s endorsement of the presidential candidate caused a stir.
Prior to Wednesday’s game, Clark explained that liking Swift’s post wasn’t necessarily an endorsement of Harris. By trying to appeal to both sides of the political spectrum, Clark seemed to be staying neutral, although it’s likely that she will support Harris after Tuesday’s controversy.
Losing is a feeling that Caitlin Clark doesn’t know too well … as of late.
Indiana suffered just its third loss since the WNBA’s Paris Olympic Games hiatus. Indiana is now 8-3 since the break and 19-18 with three games left in the season.
The night belonged to Aces forward A’ja Wilson, who broke the WNBA’s single-season points record after scoring her 956th point to pass previous record owner and Seattle Storm guard Jewell Lloyd. Wilson is averaging 27.3 points this season and could be the first WNBA player to cross the 1,000 point mark in a season.
