The WNBA has suspended Phoenix Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas for one game after she made contact with her fist to Caitlin Clark‘s throat in Wednesday night’s matchup against Indiana Fever.
According to the Associated Press, officials did not call a foul on the play during the game. However, after reviewing the incident, the WNBA ruled that Thomas committed a Flagrant Foul 2 for what it described as a non-basketball act.
Under league rules, the WNBA can review games and upgrade fouls or classify actions as flagrant even if no foul was called during the game.
Thomas will serve her suspension on Saturday when the Mercury visit the Toronto Tempo.
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How did Fever react
“It was egregious. The fact that it was a no-call … You got to call it,” said Fever coach Stephanie White after the game. “You’re coming in here aware of what happened two nights ago and that (expletive) still happens? Absolutely unacceptable.”
The Fever renewed their call for player safety in a statement Thursday. “Player safety should be paramount in our league,” Fever team president Kelly Krauskopf said in a statement. “We appreciate the WNBA’s review of last night’s incident and the action taken. Right now our focus is on Caitlin and our entire team as we prepare for Saturday.”
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Physical game involving Caitlin Clark draws attention
This is not the first time the WNBA has upgraded a foul involving Caitlin Clark. Last season, Marina Mabrey, who was then playing for Connecticut also received a technical foul during a game against Indiana. The league later upgraded that foul to a Flagrant 2. The NBA has also had several cases over the years where upgraded fouls led to suspensions.
However, in Wednesday’s game Clark later left the game in the third quarter because of a back issue. She appeared to hurt her back in the second quarter after being fouled while attempting a 3-pointer. Clark fell to the floor and was seen rubbing her back as she got up.
Earlier in the game, she briefly went to the locker room before returning to the bench wearing a wrap around her back.
Clark finished with 19 points and eight assists in 20 minutes. The Mercury won the match 111-109.
(With AP inputs)
