Caitlin Clark led the Indiana Fever to a dominating 100-81 win over the Chicago Sky on Friday. The All-Star guard finished with a career-high 31 points, 12 assists, four rebounds and one steal. Despite playing on the road, she got raucous applause from the crowd when she left the game for good as the Fever led 98-71 with 3:52 to go.
Before Clark headed to the bench, the rookie made two free throws following a flagrant-1 violation from Sky guard Diamond DeShields. Although the hit against Clark was quite blatant, the referees reviewed the play before deciding. When the infraction was confirmed, the home fans knew the officials made the right call.
Basketball fans reacted to another overly physical play by Sky players against Indiana’s franchise cornerstone.
“It’s always a THUG shoving her to the ground,” a fan posted.
One X user, @LuchaFamily, added:
“Chicago continues to be dirty. Losers.”
One fan thought it had been a common occurrence this season:
“This has been going on all season. The vets are jealous of her. WNBA leadership needs to protect her. Do you want butts in the seats or lose the future of your league. At this point, it’s poor leadership from the WNBA.”
Another fan offered what might be the commensurate punishment for DeShields:
“Suspend her without pay for the rest of the season, including the playoffs.”
“Tell me how jealous you are of Caitlin without telling me. Completely intentional,” one user commented.
In the first meeting between the Indiana Fever and the Chicago Sky, Chennedy Carter body-checked Caitlin Clark. The WNBA later upgraded the call to a Flagrant Foul 1.
Another similar incident happened in the rematch on June 16. This time, it was Angel Reese’s elbow that hit Clark’s head. Reese, after the game, told reporters that what happened was “a basketball play” and disagreed with the call.
In the final meeting of the 2024-25 season between the two teams on Friday, it was DeShields who committed the flagrant foul on Caitlin Clark. DeShields took on the unenviable job of guarding the former Iowa star as Chennedy Carter wasn’t available.
Diamond DeShields aggressively and physically hounded Caitlin Clark late in the fourth quarter
Diamond DeShields returned to the game with 4:30 remaining and the Indiana Fever up 94-71. Immediately after coming in to take out Michaela Onyenwere, she was called for an “away-from-play foul,” which resulted in a technical foul. Caitlin Clark hit the bonus free throw.
The same incident happened in the next inbound play for the Fever. DeShields was again guilty of a similar infraction, which resulted in another free throw for Clark.
Five plays later, Moriah Jefferson lost the ball while trying to attack the Fever’s paint defense. Aliyah Boston retrieved the ball before passing it to a streaking Caitlin Clark. Diamond DeShields, already too far behind, sent the rookie crashing to the floor with a bump.
The next Fever-Sky meeting will likely be in 2025, and basketball fans can’t wait to see another showdown between the two rivals.