"We got a technical foul for huddling after free throws?" - Sophie Cunningham baffled by contentious refereeing decision

Sophie Cunningham had a stellar performance against the Indiana Fever on Friday. However, the Mercury had a tough night against Caitlin Clark and Co. as the team faced a 95-86 defeat against the Fever. However, Cunningham also had a tough time with the game officials.

The WNBA guard was upset after the Mercury was slapped with a technical foul for delaying. With five minutes passed in the second quarter, the officials gave a technical foul against the visitors. Kelsey Mitchell ended up making the awarded free throw.

Upset with the call, Sophie Cunningham took to her X, formerly known as Twitter, to call out the game officials. She alleged that the officials called the technical against the Mercury for huddling and talking during the game after the free throws.

“We’ve been playing basketball our whole lives and this is the first game EVER where we got a delay/technical foul for HUDDLING after free throws???… talking with our own team. Come on now,” Cunningham wrote on Twitter.

Sophie Cunningham scored 21 points (6-13 FG, 5-9 3PT), six rebounds, four assists and two steals in the game.

Sophie Cunningham gives her perspective on Fever's Caitlin Clark hate

The narrative surrounding hate and jealousy against Caitlin Clark was one of the most highlighted news stories in the league. However, Sophie Cunningham doesn't agree with the narrative that the veteran players are jealous of the rookie.

In an interview with Slam Magazine, Cunningham squashed the narrative and said that the game becomes physical for every rookie after transitioning to WNBA and it's the same happening with Clark.

"I tell you that the narrative that we’re all against Caitlin or the vets against the rookies that needs to be squashed because it’s not like that," Cunningham told WSLAM.

"I promise you, it’s not like that. I’ve had my jaw broken, I’ve broken a finger, I’ve broken my nose. Everyone has stories of how physical this League really is and I think that is the main jump that people don’t understand."

Cunningham also added that the same physicality that Clark is facing will make her a better player in the future.

"I don’t think anyone’s being targeted. If anything, I think we need to give her a little bit of grace sometimes because she has a lot on her plate and a lot of eyes on her," she added. "But with that, I think this is gonna be really good for her. She’s gonna be great."

The recent trend has seen a dilution in the narrative that almost engulfed the WNBA for the first few weeks. Moreover, Clark is also embracing the physicality of the game and has been stellar in the past few outings.