Chennedy Carter escalated the testy conflict with a former Chicago Sky teammate after her contact to the head-and-neck area of Marina Mabrey was whistled as a flagrant foul in Friday's matchup.
Mabrey, who joined Connecticut from the Sky in July, flashed to the mid-post and looked to back down the smaller Carter, deprived of a scoring opportunity by a reckless swing of the Chicago leading scorer's right arm.
She remained on the floor holding her face for over a minute as Carter was assessed her WNBA -leading third flagrant foul. The first-quarter incident came after a pre-game video captured the Sky walking onto the Sun's home court for shootaround, where many speculated about the tension between Mabrey and her former teammates after they seemingly ignored each other before the game.
Carter remaining in Chicago at the expense of Mabrey was an unthinkable prospect just four months ago, with the former previously waived by Los Angeles and missing a year of WNBA action while the Sky sacrificed massive draft capital to secure Mabrey. The former Dallas Wings star averaged 15 points per game on career-high volume in 2023 and was set to inherit an unquestioned No. 1 scoring role after Kahleah Copper was dealt to Phoenix this offseason.
However, as first-round draft pick Angel Reese blossomed into one of the league's most productive rookies and Carter became the WNBA's 14th-leading scorer, Mabrey's role became murkier as she slumped to career-low efficiency. Mabrey took the relatively uncommon step of requesting a trade in July, telling the Chicago Sun-Times' Annie Costabile that her expectations were "let down" and indicated she was unhappy with how she was used by coach Teresa Weatherspoon.
Last month's move placed Mabrey into much more competitive confines, with Connecticut currently just two games behind New York for the WNBA's best record. Mabrey highlighted the difference between her experience on each team, including an apparent dig at Chicago and her former teams.
"[I'm excited to] be on a championship team or someone that can compete for a championship," Mabrey said. "That's gonna be something I'm not used to. I've never been in an environment like that, so I'm excited," she continued.
Mabrey began Friday's contest off the bench and her late-quarter flagrant free throws sparked an explosive outing for the veteran guard. In 13 first-half minutes, Mabrey racked up a game-high 15 points after a 4-5 shooting effort from 3-point range, entering the locker room with a 10-point lead.
It's the second time Carter has committed a flagrant foul amid public conflict with a WNBA peer this season. After minimizing the impact of rookie sensation Caitlin Clark , Carter delivered a hip check that knocked the Indiana Fever star to the ground, retroactively upgraded from a common foul by the league office.
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