Lynx Star Getting Technical Foul for Viciously Elbowing Caitlin Clark’s Teammate Enrages Fans: “She Should’ve Been Tossed”

Superstar point guard Caitlin Clark did not play when her Indiana Fever took on the Minnesota Lynx on the road.

Lynx Star Getting Technical Foul for Viciously Elbowing Caitlin Clark’s Teammate Enrages Fans: “She Should’ve Been Tossed”

Kayla McBride, Lexie Hull and Caitlin Clark (Image via FirstSportz)

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The Indiana Fever are awaiting the return of Caitlin Clark as she continues to recover from her groin injury. In the meantime, Lexie Hull and the rest of the team are trying to stay in the playoff spots.

That has become increasingly difficult. First, the season-ending injuries to both of their backup point guards were the biggest blow of the season. Had they continued to play, their form could have held up nicely until Caitlin Clark returned.

Some expected that form to help them surge up the standings. Instead, those injuries compounded matters, and the Fever started losing easy games against bottom-ranked teams.

Then, to make matters worse, Sophie Cunningham joined the season-ending injury list after tearing the MCL in her right knee. The Fever has signed Aerial Powers as her replacement, who played her first game as a member of the Fever against the Minnesota Lynx.

The away team took the lead in the 1st quarter, but then could not sustain it in the following segments. The home team, buoyed by the return of leading superstar and MVP favorite Napheesa Collier, took the lead and never looked back.

But the Fever did not just throw in the towel. In 2 and a half minutes in the 4th quarter, they rallied to reduce a 14-point deficit to 10. They were battling hard, knowing their typical late-game burst could upset the 2024 Finalists.

In one sequence, after a missed shot, the Lynx’s Kayla McBride grabbed the rebound, but was immediately closed down by Natasha Howard and Lexie Hull.

While trying to create separation, McBride flung her right elbow, which caught Hull’s jaw. The Stanford alum was sent crashing to the floor as her teammates looked on in horror.

Fans lose it after officials hand Kayla McBride a technical foul for elbowing Lexie Hull

After reviewing the play, the officials slapped Kayla McBride with a technical foul. When clips of this incident reached social media, fans were aghast as to why the officials did not eject the Minnesota Lynx guard or hand her a flagrant 1.

Kayla McBride, Mikayla Timpson and Lexie Hull during their game
Kayla McBride, Mikayla Timpson and Lexie Hull during their game (Image via Grace Smith/X)

Officiating in the WNBA has been suspect for quite a while. The Indiana Fever, in particular, has often complained about an unfair whistle. This time, they had the support of fans.

Basketball aficionados wondered what else a player has to do to get ejected. If such a foul happened in the NBA, they were sure the player would have been tossed.

This baffling decision irritated fans who felt the league had to sort the officiating problems before it got worse. Check out examples of those reactions below.

Indiana Fever fans will rue another game where they could have won. Fans might point to the officiating disparity to argue that the franchise is not being treated fairly. With just a few more games to go, their playoff situation has gone from bad to worse.

Fever drops to 8th as Caitlin Clark ramps up recovery

This 97-84 loss to the Minnesota Lynx happens to be the 6th out of their past 8 games. Out of their remaining 7 games, 6 are against playoff hopefuls.

Now, the Indiana Fever, who were once seen as a championship-caliber team, stand 8th in the leaderboard with the Los Angeles Sparks just a game behind and in better form.

They have the most difficult schedule out of the 5 teams vying for the bottom 3 playoff seedings. On top of that, their injury situation has made it worse.

At the same time, Caitlin Clark was out with the team, going through some additional workouts. It was the first time she had worked with the team in more than a month, but the practice was non-contact to help her ease in.

If the Fever does not rush her back, the 23-year-old has 12 days to work out until her team gets ready to face the Chicago Sky in their home arena.

Some fans have been calling for the franchise to shut her down for the season and avoid aggravating her injury. But the team wants to keep fighting until the last second.

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