While the Indiana Fever won their first game of the season on the road, head coach Stephanie White isn't letting that mask her frustration towards the league's officiating following Aliyah Boston's foul-out.

White feels the unnecessary foul trouble tainted the 87-78 win for the Fever against the Los Angeles Sparks, and she openly criticized the officiating while addressing Boston’s foul-out.

“I think it was foul trouble. She didn’t get a chance, really. I think it’s hard to get a flow when you are getting called for all those quote-unquote fouls.” White said in the postgame press conference alongside Caitlin Clark.

Boston played only 22 minutes and 28 seconds before the foul-out, scoring just 4 points, 2 assists, and 7 rebounds. While it was a rather uncharacteristic performance from the 2023 No.1 overall, White stood firm and pointed her fingers towards the officiating.

Boston herself addressed officiating issues from the season opener against the Dallas Wings. Speaking on the “Post Moves” podcast alongside Candace Parker, Boston said too many foul calls disrupted the flow of the game for both teams.

Boston's thoughts on her podcast felt similar to New York Liberty's Breanna Stewart's comments regarding foul calls following the overtime contest against the Washington Mystics.

“It disrupts everyone’s flow, not just my team, both sides of the game,” the WNBPA vice president said.

Regardless, Caitlin Clark received a technical foul against the Sparks as well, and the reporters asked for her thoughts on the league’s officiating.

But White interrupted, emphasizing that she would answer the question herself.

"I think there’s going to be a calibration, of course, but this felt a lot like last year to me, and that’s not where we want to be. So, I just think, we’ve got to really demand consistency in what we’re calling.” White said.

While the press conference revolved around the league's officiating, Clark created a lighthearted moment with her head coach that ended with smiles on both their faces.

Caitlin Clark Jokingly Calls Stephanie White "Insane" Over Defensive Demands

CC22 led the Fever to their first win of the season after scoring 24 points, 4 rebounds, and 9 assists on 52.9% shooting. She received help from veteran Kelsey Mitchell's 23 points following Boston's foul-out.

After the game, Clark credited the team’s defensive performance for holding the Sparks to only 78 points. But to her surprise, White told the 2024 ROTY that she wants to see more defensive effort from the team as a whole.

“We only gave up 78 points. We’re going to win a lot of games if we do that. What do you want?” Clark told White.

“I want more. Coaches always want more,” the coach replied. “That’s the nature of the beast.”

“She’s insane,” Clark said with a smile.

Clark also reacted to the technical foul she received during the game. However, the 24-year-old showed responsibility and admitted it was the right call made by the referees.

"I deserved the technical that they gave me… Obviously, they called a lot of fouls tonight. But it’s gonna even out, so you gotta give them credit there.” Clark said.

The Fever travel back home to face the Washington Mystics in their third game of the season on May 15.

With the Indiana Fever's games centered around officiating, do you believe that trend will carry to their next game as well?

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Written by

Joy Bassy

Edited by

Utsav Gupta