In the opening game of the Indiana Fever vs. Connecticut Sun WNBA playoff first-round series, two events involving Caitlin Clark and DiJonai Carrington garnered much of the attention.
Things have been rough in Sun vs. Fever games in the past, and Sunday’s game was no exception as the two seemed to be joking about with their eyes. In the first quarter, Carrington struck Clark close to her right eye. In the fourth quarter, Clark returned the favor by unintentionally knocking out Carrington’s contact.
All of these contributed to Clark’s dismal day, as he lost against the Sun 93-69 despite only scoring 11 points in 36 minutes of action. In the third quarter, the unanimous AP WNBA Rookie of the Year let her frustrations over her own play come to the surface when she angrily smacked a chair on the bench.
“Our performance was below our potential; we didn’t play well,” Clark said. “We didn’t shoot the ball as well as we could have.” We have everything it takes to win this game.
Regarding their conversations, Clark added, “You got me pretty good in the eye.” To be honest, I don’t think it influenced me. Though they didn’t go down, I thought my shots were good. It’s obviously a difficult time for it to occur.
No, Clark refused to attribute her dismal playoff start on a tough opponent’s defending style.
Besides, Clark would have chosen the incorrect Connecticut player to blame responsible if she had held Carrington responsible for the fact that she shot 2-of-13 from 3-point range and 4-of-17 from the floor.
DeWanna Bonner, 37, was the player who guarded Clark for most of the game and made things very tough for her. She used her mix of experience and length, two qualities that Clark lacks, to make the rookie star’s first playoff game an absolute nightmare.
Clark shot 0 of 3 from the floor in the first half when Bonner was defending her. Bonner’s reaction, when told this statistic by ESPN’s Holly Rowe in an on-court interview, was fitting and unforgettable.
With a giggle, Bonner leaned over and tapped the court. “Let me knock on some wood real quick.” “Because she is an excellent athlete. I have to focus because I know she’ll come out firing in the second half.
However, Clark didn’t perform much better in the second half, shooting 3-of-8 from the field and committing two turnovers. One of the main causes was Bonner’s play.
The Auburn product has been underappreciated as a defender for the majority of her career; she was only named to the second team of the 2015 All-WNBA Defensive Team. However, Bonner’s defensive win share this season is a career high at 2.5, ranking fifth in the WNBA. With a defensive rating of 92.6 this season, she is 11th in the league and has recorded the second-best rating in her 15-year career.
Bonner’s versatility and shrewdness have been an asset to her defense that haven’t been diminished throughout the course of her career. She has protected a wide range of athletes, including sharpshooting guards, centers with bruises, and wings with slashes. Clark was merely her most recent victim.
In the second quarter, as Bonner drove to the rim, the 6-foot-4 player had a block on Clark that was worthy of a highlight reel. She finished the game with 22 points, six rebounds, five assists, and two blocks. In the victory, Alyssa Thomas recorded a triple-double for the Sun, but Bonner ought to be named Game 1 MVP.
Many were surprised that Bonner was protecting Clark for Connecticut. Carrington carried the load for the most part of the Sun’s previous four games against the Fever. However, when Clark’s 19 points and five assists helped the Fever defeat the Sun 84-80 in their most recent game, Connecticut realized it needed to try a different tactic.
Bonner remarked, “We had to do something different because they beat us last time.” “There was nothing to it. I accepted the challenge because they have two excellent guards, and the only way to win is for someone to step up and play defense. She’s a fantastic athlete. The following game, I’m sure she’ll be even more explosive.
That is, in fact, Bonner and the Sun’s current challenge: Can they contain Clark once again to secure the series-winning victory?
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