Fever's Sophie Cunningham receives praise for having Caitlin Clark's back in wild game vs Sun

Indiana Fever defender Sophie Cunningham received praise connected societal media Tuesday nighttime arsenic she appeared to support Caitlin Clark with a hard foul connected Connecticut Sun defender Jacy Sheldon.

Cunningham and Sheldon’s heated speech turned into a shoving lucifer earlier players from some teams came implicit to interruption it up. Cunningham, Sheldon and Sun defender Lindsay Allen were ejected from the crippled with astir 40 seconds near earlier the Fever took location the victory.

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Indiana Fever defender Sophie Cunningham, #8, and Connecticut Sun defender Jacy Sheldon, #4, get into a combat successful the 2nd fractional astatine Gainbridge Fieldhouse successful Indianapolis connected June 17, 2025. (Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images)

The hard foul came aft Sheldon poked Clark successful the eye successful the 3rd quarter. Sun defender Marina Mabrey past shoved Clark to the crushed successful what was a chippy affair.

As the Fever enactment distant the Sun 88-71, Cunningham was congratulated for stepping up arsenic the team’s enforcer.

Fever caput manager Stephanie White was upset with however the referees officiated the crippled and astir the inability to instrumentality control.

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Indiana Fever defender Sophie Cunningham, #8, successful the 2nd fractional against the Connecticut Sun astatine Gainbridge Fieldhouse successful Indianapolis connected June 17, 2025. (Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images)

"I deliberation it was beauteous evident that worldly was brewing," White said, via Indy Star. "When officials don’t get power of the shot game, erstwhile they let that worldly to hap … it’s been happening each play long, each play long. It’s not conscionable this game.

"This is what happens. You’ve got competitory women who are the champion successful the satellite astatine what they bash and erstwhile you let them to play physical, and you let these things to happen, they’re gonna compete, and they’re gonna person their teammates’ backs. It’s precisely what you would expect retired of fierce competition.

Indiana Fever defender Sophie Cunningham, #8, and Connecticut Sun defender Jacy Sheldon, #4, scuffle successful the 2nd fractional of a WNBA hoops crippled successful Indianapolis connected Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

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"I started talking to officials successful the archetypal quarter, and we knew this was gonna happen. You knew this was gonna happen. They gotta get power of it. They gotta beryllium better. They gotta beryllium better."

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