Christie Sides Facing Intense Backlash For Caitlin Clark Decision

The Indiana Fever fell to the visiting Las Vegas Aces in a primetime matchup at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Friday night.

The reigning WNBA champions held off a comeback effort from Caitlin Clark and the Fever in the second half, notching a 78-74 final score over the home team.

Trailing by three with less than 30 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, the Fever had a golden opportunity to tie the game and put some serious pressure on the Aces. Head coach Christie Sides called a timeout to advance the ball to half court and took the time to draw up a play for her squad.

The assumption heading into this critical play was that either Clark or Kelsey Mitchell would take the three-point shot with a chance to tie the game. Instead, the ball ended up in the hands of second-year center Aliyah Boston.

Boston took the open look from the corner. The balled rimmed out and into the hands of MVP frontrunner A'ja Wilson.

WNBA fans are stunned that it wasn't Clark to take the crucial shot.

"Christie sides really came up with an aliyah boston three and didn’t even let caitlin touch the ball on the biggest possession of the game smh," one fan wrote.

"Christie Sides called a play for Aliyah to shoot a three? Is this real life??" another asked.

"How does Indiana not get the ball into Caitlin Clark’s hands for the game tying shot @ChristieSides what are you doing?" another added.

"Christie Sides needs to go to a coaching seminar for out of bounds plays. She has nothing for end game situations," another said.

The Fever have now lost three of their last four games, including two in a row to the reigning-champion Aces. Sides and her squad will finish the regular season with matchups against the Dallas Wings and Washington Mystics.

Related: Calls Intensify for Christie Sides' Firing After Loss to Aces