Caitlin Clark Gets a Black Eye Early in Her ‘Frustrating’ WNBA Playoff Debut

Caitlin Clark’s rookie season in the WNBA left a lasting impression, but her playoff debut on Sunday was one she’d rather forget.

During the game against the Connecticut Sun, the Indiana Fever star, 22, suffered a black eye when she was accidentally poked in the eye by Dijonai Carrington while attempting a three-point shot in the first quarter. Clark struggled to find her rhythm, missing 10 of her first 11 shots and finishing the game shooting 2-for-13 from three-point range.

Despite the setback, Clark refused to blame her performance on the eye injury, stating, “[Carrington] got me pretty good in the eye; I don’t think it affected me. I felt like I got good shots, they just didn’t go down.” Clark, who was named the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year just a day prior, scored only 11 points, well below her regular season average of 19.2 points per game.

Clark’s shooting percentage in the playoff game was 23.5%, a significant drop from her regular season average of 41.7%.

After the game, Clark described her postseason debut as “frustrating.”

“My shot felt like it was right there,” Clark expressed to the press. “It’s so frustrating as a shooter when it won’t go down for you.”

While Indiana initially kept the game close, the Connecticut Sun pulled ahead in the third quarter and secured a 93-69 victory.

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Fans online speculated about the intensity of the game, particularly a moment in the third quarter when Clark seemed to retaliate against Carrington, sparking a bit of controversy.

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The rematch between Clark and Carrington is scheduled for Wednesday night in Game Two of the playoff series between Indiana and Connecticut.