The WNBA rescinded a technical foul assessed to Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark on Saturday, preventing an automatic one-game suspension that would have sidelined her for Tuesday’s game against the New York Liberty.
The league confirmed the reversal in a statement to The Associated Press hours after Clark was called for the technical during the third quarter of Indiana’s 90-86 win over the Chicago Sky. The call, initially Clark’s eighth of the season, would have triggered a suspension under league rules. The Fever had indicated they would appeal the decision, but the league’s intervention rendered the appeal unnecessary.
Clark drew the technical after making contact with an official while out of bounds, though she maintained the collision was unintentional. In a postgame interview with ESPN’s Holly Rowe, Clark stated: “She said I ran into her. I’ve already watched it on the tape. So we’ll let the league decide, but it wasn’t intentional or anything. So I’m hoping it gets rescinded.”
Coach Stephanie White, who also received a technical foul for her reaction to the call, criticized the officiating in a postgame press conference. “That’s a bad call,” White said. “Incidental contact when you’re flying out of control like that happens all the time in a game. Officials have to have some awareness in those moments, and it didn’t happen.” White added that she received her own technical for using profanity in response to the call.
The WNBA has not publicly detailed the rationale for overturning the technical, though league spokesman David Higdon confirmed the decision in a statement to the AP. The reversal comes amid ongoing discussions about officiating consistency in the league, with Clark previously calling for the adoption of full-time referees to address perceived inconsistencies.
Clark leads the WNBA with eight technical fouls this season, followed by Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese with seven. The Fever remain in playoff contention as they continue their season with Clark available for Tuesday’s matchup. The league’s decision to reverse the call follows a pattern of reviewing and adjusting controversial officiating decisions in recent weeks.