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By Matthew Couden
Contributing Writer
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The WNBA Playoffs' intensity was on full display, as A'ja Wilson and the Las Vegas Aces looked to eliminate Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever in Game 2.
However, Wilson and her team faced a hostile and fired-up crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. In the game's fourth quarter, the Fever's Sophie Cunningham fouled Wilson, who moments later got into a heated exchange with a fan sitting a few seats away from the baseline.
The four-time league MVP was visibly upset and went into the crowd to confront the fan, pointing and yelling something at the individual. Officials and teammates intervened to prevent things from escalating.
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Wilson demanded that the fan be removed from the arena, and the fan was briefly removed but returned later. The Aces star also received a technical foul for confronting the fan.
More news: Caitlin Clark Makes WNBA History in Just First Half of Aces-Fever Playoff Game
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After the game, Wilson told reporters the Fever had much more "intensity" than before because they had "a sense of urgency" in a must-win game. She also addressed her confrontation with the fan who was ushered out of the arena but then returned to their seat later in the fourth quarter.
"With the baseline situation, I don't know if you guys know me, but I don't really get into the [expletive]. I don't. I try to play my game, keep it pushin'. But if I'm just walking because I just got the foul, I'm chillin', and if I see a man come at me, taking steps towards me and pointing at me, I don’t give a damn what you said; I don't give a damn how you said it, the tone. That is unacceptable," Wilson said at her postgame media session.
"You don't step towards me and point at me. I'm not for that [expletive] at all," she said. "I apologized to my team because I got us a tech, but there's just certain things that I'm not gonna allow."
The Fever also released a statement about the incident, explaining why the fan was allowed to return to their seat after the confrontation.
Indiana won the game 99-89, staving off elimination in the best-of-three series. Earlier in the fourth quarter, a referee called Indiana's Caitlin Clark for her sixth foul after she attempted to defend the lane from a driving Aces player. Clark watched the remainder of the game from the bench after fouling out.
She had an impressive performance in the win, finishing with 27 points, 15 assists, and seven rebounds. Clark became fired up in the first half after receiving a technical foul for waving off a referee's push-off foul call on her.
Wilson had 22 points, nine rebounds, three steals, and two assists in the losing effort. Things clearly got intense for the WNBA superstar in the moment as she was trying to help her team win, because she generally doesn't get into confrontations like that with fans during games.
Wilson only had one technical foul this past season, while her head coach, Becky Hammon, received three.
During a regular-season game last month, Wilson's Aces teammate, Jackie Young, also had a heated incident in Indiana, and two fans were escorted from their seats.
Game 3 occurs on Thursday, Oct. 1, at 9 p.m. ET in Las Vegas, with the winner moving on to the second round of the WNBA Playoffs.
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