“Fiery” would be the best word to describe what Caitlin Clark was tonight against the Seattle Storm. However, this was in a positive sense until the second half. Anyone who watched the first 30 minutes would confidently say how the rookie was not feeling the game. In fact, one moment during that period is exactly why the first overall pick received a technical foul. Nevertheless, in spite of being frustrated over the fact, she chose to look at the silver lining.

The passion was high in the Gainbridge Fieldhouse tonight. The Fever fought hard to not lose the season series vs Seattle. Caitlin Clark’s shots not going in only elevated the anger inside her. Moreover, even her passes converted into turnovers as they locked horns with the league’s leaders in steals. Going into the second half, the former Hawkeye had only made 8 points. When the clock read 7:25 remaining for the third quarter, the current assists leader of the league pulled up for a 29-foot three-point step-back jump shot.

Surprisingly to her, it did not go in. Consequently, her emotions got the better of her as she hit the backboard quite hard. What came next was a whistle as she picked up her fifth technical of the season. Explaining what the call did for her, Caitlin Clark spoke in the postgame presser, “I got a technical for basically being mad at myself because I missed the three and then I went and hit the backboard. He (the referee) told me it was disrespectful to the game of basketball.”

She further added, “It’s just because I’m a competitor and I felt like I should have been making more shots. But I think he fired me up to continue to play a lot harder. I think we got a lot better after he did that. So, I want to thank him for that!”

However, this was not the first time that Clark had steamed off her frustration like this. Even her head coach Christie Sides knows it.

Caitlin Clark’s antics and the stories of her ‘venting’

We have all known how competitive Caitlin Clark can get. Whether you go all the way back to her younger years when she wanted to do better than her brother at riding a bike or now when she gave Lexie Hull a hard time at the golf outing, this rookie is all about fire. In fact, even in the WNBA games, we see her hit the bench and throw her Gatorade bottle to let the steam out.

She herself mentioned tonight, “It reminded me of a technical I got in the college where I said ‘Damn it’ where it’s like personal frustration. It had nothing to do with my team, nothing to do with the referee, nothing to do with the other team.” Clearly, Clark knows herself quite well too. And so does her new head coach Sides, who herself got into a sticky situation.

In her postgame presser, Sides also mentioned how Caitlin Clark had done such actions before when she could not add to the team. However, she has never picked a technical for it. While we do know just why the No. 22 got the whistle, it was much better to know how she took it. Certainly, the team picked up their pace 15 minutes before the game clock went out and got the better of the Storm.

Now, the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer has amassed 5 technical fouls. According to WNBA’s rules, she is only left with two more until she faces a one-game suspension. Only time will tell if she walks on eggshells after this one.

Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.