The scuffles that took place during Indiana Fever and Connecticut Sun’s June 17 match are still a talking point among fans and players. After Sophie Cunningham’s defense on Caitlin Clark went viral and led to a petition, now Sun guard Marina Mabrey has broken her silence on her incident with Clark with an eight-word message.
“Damned if I do, damned if I don’t,” Mabrey said while addressing a commenter during an Instagram Live session alongside rookie teammate Saniya Rivers, who called her out for he incident with Clark (via Sports Illustrated).
The veteran shoved Clark to the ground after the Fever guard and Mabrey’s teammate Jacy Sheldon pushed each other. The incident led to a clash between the two teams, with Mabrey and Clark both receiving technical fouls. However, Mabrey’s was then later upgraded to flagrant 2.
Meanwhile, in the last quarter, Cunningham also had a scuffle with Sheldon, which ended up in another clash between the two sides. While Mabrey didn’t want to comment more on the situation, Rivers was more straightforward with her comments, calling Fever fans “delusional” for saying the fight was “forced.”
Caitlin Clark #22 of the Indiana Fever falls to the floor after being pushed by Marina Mabrey #3 of the Connecticut Sun (Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
Sophie Cunningham receives additional fine
Despite the multiple altercations, no players were suspended following the heated game. Sophie Cunningham received an additional fine on top of the standard flagrant 2 penalty after pulling Sheldon to the ground, sparking a scuffle that led to the ejections of Cunningham, Sheldon, and Lindsay Allen.
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Clark, Sheldon, and Mabrey also avoided further disciplinary action, as well as Fever coach Stephanie White who avoided a fine despite criticizing officials after the match. Indiana won the game 88–71, clinching a spot in the Commissioner’s Cup final.
