Sophie Cunningham calls out WNBA refs for not protecting Caitlin Clark after starting fight to protect her

Indiana Fever prima Sophie Cunningham threw a jab astatine the WNBA and its referees Saturday. 

While speaking with reporters astir her fiery and carnal defence of teammate Caitlin Clark Tuesday against Connecticut Sun players, Cunningham called retired the league for "not protecting" Clark during the phenom's young WNBA career. 

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 June 17, 2025. (Trevor Ruszkowski/Imagn Images)

Cunningham became a viral sensation implicit the past week aft committing a hard foul connected Sun defender Jacy Sheldon, who poked Clark successful the oculus earlier successful the game. A brawl betwixt the teams ensued with Cunningham astatine the halfway of it for Indiana. Cunningham, Sheldon and Sun defender Lindsay Allen were ejected from the crippled with astir 40 seconds near earlier the Fever took location the victory.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

"During that, it was conscionable portion of the game. I deliberation the refs had a batch to bash with that. It was a build-up for a mates years present of them conscionable not protecting the prima subordinate of the WNBA," Cunningham said. "At the extremity of the day, I'm going to support my teammates. That's what I do." 

Lack of adjacent extortion for Clark by referees has been 1 of the WNBA's biggest criticisms since she entered the league past year. 

Clark's rookie twelvemonth successful 2024 included respective arguable incidents successful which Clark was roughed up by opposing players. Sometimes, referees failed to telephone a foul, sparking instrumentality outrage. 

This season, successful a nonaccomplishment to the New York Liberty May 24, Clark took interaction from New York's Natasha Cloud connected the last play of the game. Referees did not telephone a foul, prompting Clark to propulsion her hands up successful confusion, and she and Cunningham barked astatine the referees arsenic the crippled ended. 

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 June 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

A replay showed Cloud pushing her enarthrosis into Clark's the infinitesimal the shot came loose. The Fever were down by two, and a foul would person sent Clark to the free-throw enactment with a accidental to triumph the game. 

Cunningham is taking matters into her ain hands to punish players who get excessively physical, successful her opinion, with Clark. And Cunningham besides appears to beryllium keeping referees connected their toes. 

WHO IS SOPHIE CUNNINGHAM? CAITLIN CLARK'S NEW ‘BODYGUARD’ TEAMMATE

Former NBA All-Star Joakim Noah, who built a estimation arsenic an "enforcer" during his vocation portion protecting a young Derrick Rose, told Fox News Digital successful September helium would impulse the Fever to get a subordinate to support Clark for 2025. 

"If I was the proprietor of the Indiana Fever, I would get a existent enforcer successful determination to support her," Noah told Fox News Digital. 

"Sometimes I consciousness similar she is getting deed due to the fact that she is simply a precise talented person. … But, astatine the extremity of the day, we’re successful the concern of winning games, truthful if I’m the proprietor [of the Indiana Fever], I’m getting a existent enforcer successful there."

Who is Sophie Cunningham?

Indiana Fever defender Sophie Cunningham poses for a photograph May 17, 2025, earlier a crippled against the Chicago Sky astatine Gainbridge Fieldhouse successful Indianapolis May 17, 2025. (Grace Smith/Imagn Images via IndyStar)

Cunningham has go a people leader to many, and her popularity has skyrocketed successful the days since the fight. 

Prior to Tuesday's game, Cunningham had less than 400,000 followers connected TikTok. 

At the clip of publication, she had 1.2 cardinal connected TikTok, and that fig is lone growing. 

She has an estimated summation of much than 300,000 followers connected Instagram since the crippled arsenic well, with a full of much than 800,000 astatine the clip of publication. 

With Cunningham earning the nickname "the enforcer" for the Fever, fans counting connected her to support Caitlin Clark tin remainder casual knowing she is simply a achromatic loop successful the Korean martial creation of Taekwondo. 

She earned the achromatic loop astatine the property of 6. 

Her begetter Jim played shot astatine the University of Missouri, and she ended up pursuing successful her dad's footsteps connected the shot field.

A 2014 article by the Columbia Missourian reported Cunningham was the archetypal pistillate to ever people immoderate points for the squad successful history, erstwhile she kicked 2 of 4 other points successful spot of the team's regular kicker, who had torn an ACL. 

Cunningham adjacent handled kickoff duties.

"I was truthful nervous," Cunningham told the outlet. "I mean, I've ne'er played shot earlier successful each my life. Right erstwhile I got the shot (on the opening kickoff), I couldn't perceive anything. I conscionable enactment the shot down and kicked it."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Cunningham comes from a household of farmers and credits that upbringing for the idiosyncratic she is today, according to five-part diagnostic series by the University of Missouri.

"So overmuch of our occurrence goes backmost to what we learned here," Cunningham said of moving connected the farm. "We loved coming retired to the workplace to help. We recovered retired however to enactment hard and enactment together. It made america workplace strong."

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports sum connected X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.