The Indiana Fever will face the Connecticut Sun for their fourth and final regular-season matchup on Sunday without their star guard, Caitlin Clark. The team confirmed that Clark, who has been recovering from a right groin injury since mid-July, did not travel with the team to Uncasville, Connecticut, for the game.
Clark has been sidelined since July 15, when she sustained the injury in the final minute of the Fever’s 85-77 victory over the very same Connecticut Sun. The injury occurred after she made a bounce-pass assist to teammate Kelsey Mitchell. Sunday’s game will mark the 13th consecutive contest she has missed. While the team remains hopeful for her return before the end of the regular season, there is currently no official timetable. According to Fever coach Stephanie White, the hope is that she will be back, but her recovery is the priority.
In addition to her recovery, Clark is also supporting her boyfriend, Butler assistant coach Connor McCaffery, following the death of his grandmother. McCaffery shared the news of his grandmother’s passing, Marit Smaby-Nowlin, 80, in an Instagram post on Saturday. According to a report from the Star Tribune, Smaby-Nowlin was found unresponsive in a northern Minnesota lake on Wednesday evening.
The season series between the Fever and the Sun has been intensely competitive and physical. The Sun claimed the first game on May 30 with a narrow 85-83 victory. The Fever evened the series on June 17, winning 88-71 in a contentious game that featured multiple scuffles and ejections. In that matchup, a heated exchange between Clark and then-Sun guard Jacy Sheldon led to shoves, technical fouls, and later, the ejections of Indiana’s Sophie Cunningham and Connecticut’s Sheldon and Lindsay Allen. The Fever took a 2-1 series lead in the July 15 game that saw Clark exit with her injury.
Despite the absence of the 2024 Rookie of the Year, the Fever have demonstrated resilience. The team has found success with veteran players stepping up, securing crucial victories that have kept them firmly in the playoff hunt. In 13 games this season, Clark has averaged 16.5 points, 8.8 assists, and 5.0 rebounds.
The upcoming game is crucial for both teams as the regular season winds down. The Fever will look to secure the season series win on the road, while the Sun will aim to defend their home court and even the score. The game is scheduled to tip off at 1 p.m. ET at the Mohegan Sun Arena and will be broadcast nationally on NBA TV.
