Tuesday night’s Commissioner’s Cup game between the Indiana Fever and Connecticut Sun had reignited a heated rivalry between two former college foes. One of the central figures in the on-court drama was Jacy Sheldon, the Sun’s rookie guard who got into a fiery altercation with Fever superstar Caitlin Clark.
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Clark vs Sheldon
With 9:13 left in the second quarter, Clark and Sheldon found themselves face-to-face. Sheldon wanted to say something to Clark, who did not want to listen to him. Fever star pushed the Sun guard a bit away, and the situation was instantly diffused. But that early clash was just the beginning.
The real fireworks came in the third quarter. As Clark backed Sheldon down at the top of the key, Sheldon poked Clark in the eye, who responded by angrily shoving Sheldon away. While Clark turned to plead her case to the officials, Sun guard Marina Mabrey escalated tensions further by shoving Clark to the ground from behind. Players from both teams rushed in to break up the scuffle.
Sheldon’s foul was changed to a flagrant foul, and officials gave Clark and Sun veteran Tina Charles matching technical fouls. Mabrey was also technical for the shove and avoided the ejection.
Sun’s struggles continue after game ends in Fever win
Later in the fourth quarter, Sheldon was again at the centre of conflict when Fever guard Sophie Cunningham committed a hard foul on her under the basket. They confronted, and this time, both Sheldon and Cunningham were ejected.
However, Fever pulled out a dominant 88–71 win, with Clark scoring 20 points and dishing six assists in her second game back from injury. Sheldon, while not putting up big numbers on the stat sheet, was clearly a disruptive defensive force throughout the night.
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Sheldon and Clark’s rivalry dates back to their college days in the Big Ten, when Sheldon played for Ohio State and Clark starred for Iowa.
The Sun, who now drop to 3–8 on the season, are still looking for rhythm.
