Indiana Fever guard Lexie Hull is offering some insight into the team’s locker room after a viral exchange between Caitlin Clark and head coach Stephanie White has garnered headlines.
Following the Fever’s 100-84 loss to the Portland Fire on May 30, footage of White and Clark getting into a verbal disagreement during a team huddle circulated across social media. In the video, White eventually removed Clark from the bench and asked Raven Johnson to sit in her place. Kelsey Mitchell and Makayla Timpson attempted to calm Clark, who shook her head while standing behind her coach.
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During an appearance on Yahoo Sports Daily on Monday, Hull acknowledged frustrations boiled over in the moment, but clarified that “it’s not something that we’re worried about at all.”
“That’s part of the game. There’s frustrations that rise and decisions have to be made and ultimately this wasn’t something that carried on,” Hull said. “This is in the moment, something that happened and not something that is talked about now in our locker room or talked about even later on in the game. That’s just something that happened and unfortunately, Caitlin’s got a camera on her 24/7 and so you see every little thing.”
OPINION: Are Caitlin Clark, Fever losing composure? Frustration hits boiling point
Hull explained the Fever’s defensive effort added to the frustration. Indiana committed 18 turnovers in the loss to the Fire and gave up 52 paint points. Clark finished with six points, six assists and five fouls.
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“We noticed they were trying to pick on Caitlin (Clark) a little bit on defensive line,” Hull added on Monday. “She was getting called for some fouls. Fouls aren’t fun. She got in some foul trouble. Our team got into some foul trouble and that’s just all it was… this happens almost every day in women’s basketball.”
Following Saturday’s loss, White said the Fire’s “competitive spirit was better than ours.”
Clark acknowledged it was a tough game, but vowed to bounce back and defend without fouling.
“It’s hard when you foul and I just need to do a better job of being straight up, keep the defender in front of me,” Clark said. “Also, if they’re going to hunt ISOs, just move my feet a little bit better… but that’s just basketball. It’s just a game. Just learn from it, watch the film and come back next game and be ready to go.”
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Reach USA TODAY National Women’s Sports Reporter Cydney Henderson at chenderson@gannett.com and follow her on X at @CydHenderson.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fever’s Lexie Hull addresses viral Caitlin Clark, Stephanie White video
