DiJonai Carrington and Caitlin Clark deny any malicious intent in opener

Early in Game 1 of the WNBA playoffs between the Connecticut Sun and the Indiana Fever, DiJonai Carrington hit Caitlin Clark as she tried to play the ball. Carrington accidentally hit Clark in the eye, but no foul was called.

It was pretty clear that there was no intention to harm Clark in this action. Carrington was simply intending to make a play on the ball. But that didn’t stop a reporter from asking a ridiculous question at a press conference.

Christine Brennan of USA Today asked Carrington if she had deliberately hit Clark in the eye. The Sun star, surprised by the question, provided a strong response.

“I don’t even know why I would have intended to hit someone in the eye. It doesn’t make sense,” Carrington said. “I didn’t. I didn’t actually know I hit it. I was trying to play with the ball and I guess I hit it. Obviously, it’s never intentional. That’s not the kind of player I am.”

Brennan then asked Carrington if she and her Connecticut teammate, Marina Mabrey, laughed about the incident after it happened.

“I just told you I didn’t even know I hit her, so I can’t laugh at something I didn’t know happened,” Carrington said.

Carrington finished with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists, helping the Sun to a 93-69 victory in Game 1. Clark finished the night with 11 points, eight assists and four rebounds.

Even Clark defended Carrington over the play.

“It was absolutely not intentional,” Clark said, laughing at the question. “You just looked at the play, it was not intentional.”

The Sun and Fever face off in Game 2 on Wednesday night, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.