Tensions could be high as Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever meet the Connecticut Sun on Tuesday in Boston.
In the teams' previous meeting in June, tempers flared amid repeated altercations between Indiana's Clark and Sophie Cunningham and Connecticut's Marina Mabrey, Jacy Sheldon and Tina Charles.
Eventually, Mabrey pushed Clark to the ground — yet she was handed only a technical foul.
The WNBA upgraded the penalty to a Flagrant 2 the next day, fining both Mabrey and Cunnigham.
Live coverage of Tuesday's rematch will be available on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT.
Watch Caitlin Clark and the Fever take on the Sun on Sportsnet
Caitlin Clark and her Indiana Fever take on the Connecticut Sun for the first time since tensions boiled over between the two squads on June 17. Watch the rematch go down on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ starting at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT.
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Mabrey's technical followed a skirmish in the third quarter. Sheldon poked Caitlin Clark in the eye while defending her. Clark pushed Sheldon away, and Mabrey forcefully pushed Clark, knocking the star guard to the ground. Clark and Tina Charles were also assessed technical fouls.
In a pool report, official Ashley Gloss said the contact made by Mabrey didn't rise to the level of an ejection or meet the criteria for a Flagrant-2.
After the contest, both teams said missed calls and poor game management by the officials led to the melee at the end.
Fever coach Stephanie White said “bad officiating” is a league-wide issue and that “everybody (in the WNBA) is getting better, except the officials.”
The Fever-Sun game tips off the final week of action before the all-star break, which will be a showcase for Clark.
Indiana has three all-stars with Clark, Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell all playing in the game Saturday. Clark, who is one of the captains, took both her Indiana teammates for her team in the game.
Indiana is trying to get some momentum heading into the break as they are just over .500 heading into Tuesday night's game.
--with files from The Associated Press
