Coming up through Jersey’s gritty outdoor hoops, Marina Mabrey never had much choice but to play tough. That “don’t get punked” mentality? It stuck. From college battles to WNBA showdowns, Mabrey has always leaned into the physical side of the game – body on the line, no nonsense, all dawg. That edge isn’t just respected, it’s feared. Even former Sun (and now Indiana) HC Stephanie White used to admire that fire when Mabrey wasn’t torching her squad. But funny how the tables turn.

Now that White’s the one watching her own players get knocked around by that same ferocity, the appreciation turned into outrage. Well, she’s not alone. The responses we got from fans in ES’ flagship newsletter, ‘She Got Game,’ scream the same. But before we get into it, let’s unpack exactly what went down.

What exactly happened? 

It was Fever vs Sun, and the game started like any other until it didn’t. With just three minutes in, things took a turn. Clark got locked up with Jacy Sheldon and then shoved by Olivia Nelson-Ododa, and from that moment on, it was all physical, aggressive, and loud. The tension built quarter by quarter, but it exploded in the third.

Late in the third, with 4:55 left on the clock, Clark was dribbling around the perimeter when Sheldon made contact with her face. As Clark tried to cut into the paint, Sheldon stayed glued to her, giving her no space. Just as the broadcast crew started questioning Sheldon’s physical defense, a whistle blew. 

Sheldon had reached from behind, poking Clark in the eye as she turned. But instead of backing off, Sheldon appeared to taunt her. Clark, clearly frustrated, shoved her off. And Sheldon was still talking. Then, on a dead ball, Marina Mabrey stepped in. She got up in Clark’s space and shoved her to the floor. Tina Charles also stepped in, trying to talk to the point guard. 

After what felt like an eternity, the officials reviewed the incident. The result? Sheldon was hit with a flagrant foul, while Clark and Charles got double techs. Mabrey also received a technical foul, which left fans and even the broadcast confused, especially given the nature of the shove. “Oh, Marina Mabrey is going to be ejected,” Fever play-by-play announcer Pat Boylan said. “If the officials saw that, then Marina Mabrey is going to be ejected… Mabrey’s day is almost assuredly going to be done.” 

But she wasn’t. According to crew chief Ashley Gloss in a postgame pool report, Mabrey’s contact “did not rise to the level of an ejection” or meet the flagrant two criteria. But fans weren’t having it. Most of them were frustrated and called it ‘unfair.’ 

SGG poll results: Did Marina Mabrey cross the line?

In the recent 100th edition of “She Got Game,” we ran a poll asking, “Did Marina Mabrey’s Shove Deserve an Ejection?” The poll went out to 76,854 subscribers and within just 36 hours, we received close to 850 – that is 90% votes – for “Yes, no question.” The reactions were a mix of outrage, disbelief, and frustration.

“It was a pure bullying act. Clark and Sheldon have the issue, let them handle it. But tempers got that far out of hand because the refs let it go there.”

In case you haven’t come across it yet, the “bullying” chatter isn’t slowing down anytime soon. Another clip is now making the rounds, and this one’s just adding fuel to the fire. Moments before Marina Mabrey’s hard foul on Clark, cameras caught her throwing what looked like a backfist punch at Aliyah Boston. Sure, physicality was the theme of the night, no doubt about that. But a lot of fans are calling Mabrey’s behavior straight-up nasty. And then came the ultimate showdown, which infuriated Fever faithful. 

Through it all, officiating was the central issue. Even the broadcasters voiced their concerns. “Blaming this all on the officials tonight,” one of them said. They repeated it multiple times. “I’m exhausted with this game and the officiating.” What threw fans off even more was seeing Marina Mabrey laughing during the review. Many felt like she already knew the call would go her way. And well, it did. Meanwhile, the other heated moment between Sophie Cunningham and Jacy Sheldon ended with three ejections. But interestingly, fans have been backing Cunningham, calling it a “revenge hard foul” and praising her for standing up for her teammate.

“She blatantly pushed CC to the floor…”

Even Indiana Fever coach Stephanie White didn’t hold back in her postgame presser. “I think that it was pretty obvious that stuff was brewing when officials don’t get control of the ball game, when they allow that stuff to happen.” She went on to say that the officiating has been stacked against them all season, and this night was no different. Especially Clark ending up with a technical herself was totally ‘unfair,’ per her. And while the league did later upgrade Mabrey’s technical to a Flagrant 2, there was no ejection in real-time. A fine of $400 will be levied – as is the norm for flagrant fouls – but for fans, that wasn’t enough.

Meanwhile, Sun head coach Rachid Meziane didn’t hold back. He called Sophie Cunningham’s late-game foul on Sheldon “disrespectful,” pointing out that the Fever were already comfortably ahead. However, when it came to Mabrey’s shove, he defended her, saying, “She just tried to be between two players,” and didn’t believe it warranted an ejection. His response sparked even more backlash online, especially when viewed against what White said. Fever coach was asked whether Cunningham’s foul was justified as an “enforcer”. However, she shut it down immediately, saying, “I view it as a flagrant foul.”

“It was dangerous, stupid.” “It was cowardly.”

Does it feel like déjà vu? Well, it probably is. Because we saw a nearly identical storm brew last year when Chennedy Carter’s foul on Caitlin Clark took over every headline. And just like now, the discourse wasn’t only about the foul, it was about everything that followed it. 

Last year, Chennedy Carter faced backlash after reposting and liking clips that defended her actions, some even claiming Caitlin Clark “flopped“. This time, it’s Marina Mabrey’s demeanor drawing criticism. Moments after the shove, cameras caught her saying, “I don’t give a f—,” and laughing during the 10-minute review. Unsurprisingly, none of it sat well with Fever fans. Then came the Instagram Live. Mabrey and Saniya Rivers went live together, casually brushing off the incident. At one point, Rivers defended the physicality, saying, “When the dudes do it, it’s fine”. Many saw it as a lazy excuse to shed off accountability.

“This could have set a good example.” “Ejection would’ve sent a statement.”

Others took a softer approach, calling Mabrey a solid vet but still believing that an example should have been set. Simply put, physicality needs to be brought under control. To use numbers to put things into perspective, last season, 17% of all flagrant fouls in the league were committed against Caitlin Clark. She drew more than double the flagrant fouls than the next closest player. In fact, she was fouled 4.2 times per game – the third-highest rate across the W.

And well, it’s looking like that trend hasn’t slowed down one bit. But this isn’t just about Clark – across the board, physicality is up. While some legends defend it as part of the game’s competitive edge, and yes, even we as fans enjoy the fire. But it shouldn’t reach a point where someone gets seriously hurt, or where the league’s fairness is compromised.

So, what do you think? Should Marina Mabrey have been ejected? Or was the Flagrant 2 and fine enough? Let us know.