The worry surrounding the latest injury to Caitlin Clark has shifted the focus away from the box score. An early exit from a game has left Dan Patrick pointing out a trend regarding how the young star is treated on the court.

The Indiana Fever guard had to leave the June 24 home game against the Phoenix Mercury after suffering a back injury. The injury occurred after a series of physical, uncalled plays that kept escalating throughout the night. Indiana lost the game by a score of 111-109. 

Veteran broadcaster Patrick shared his views on The Dan Patrick Show on Thursday, June 25. He stated, "Is she refereed differently? She is, she is officiated differently." A video clip of the segment was shared on X by the account @dpshow. 

During the broadcast, Patrick also responded to the postgame comments made by Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White, who was upset with how the game was called. Patrick made it clear that he agreed with White, tying the lack of whistles to Clark’s back injury.

The injury happened in the 3rd quarter. Clark attempted a three-pointer and was contested by Valeriane Ayayi, who failed to give Clark a safe place to land. 

Clark landed on Ayayi's foot and grabbed her lower back in pain before exiting the game. The referees reviewed the play on the monitor. But they decided not to upgrade the personal foul to a closeout.

That violation followed a more physical sequence in the 2nd quarter. Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas made contact with her fist to Clark's neck and throat area while Clark was down on the floor. 

No whistle was blown at the time. After the game, White criticized the officiating, calling the uncalled sequences "cheap shots" and "dangerous." 

The physical play and the lack of immediate whistles forced the league office to take a closer look at the game tape.

League review adds weight to officiating debate 

Clark finished the night with 19 points and 8 assists in just 20 minutes of play. The Fever currently list her as day-to-day as they monitor her recovery ahead of their next game against the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday.

According to a report by ESPN, the WNBA applied a penalty after reviewing the second-quarter incident. The league upgraded the uncalled contact by Thomas to a Flagrant Foul 2 and issued her a one-game suspension. 

Meanwhile, the league chose not to upgrade the Ayayi landing-space foul, meaning the referees' initial on-court decision stood. 

These postgame announcements only added to the ongoing debate regarding whether the on-court officials are doing enough to protect players during live action.

The Fever now sit at a 10-8 record following the loss to Phoenix.  Indiana now prepares to host the Los Angeles Sparks at home, knowing their future path depends on their star's health.

Do you think the WNBA's after-game suspensions are enough to fix the officiating issues, or do referees need to make tougher calls during the game? 

Read more at Her Sports Nation! 

Written by

Utsav Sinha

Edited by

Koushik Biswas