Caitlin Clark delivered one of the worst performances of her career on Sunday, scoring just one point in Team USA’s narrow 55-52 win over Italy in the 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup group stage.
Clark’s miserable outing against the Italian national team sparked outrage in the WNBA community, as the all-time NCAA points leader’s offensive woes raised questions.
Caitlin Clark’s Dismal Performance Against Italy Draws Backlash From the WNBA World
Clark, who came off a 14-point, 11-assist game against China on Friday, misfired from the field against Italy, going 0-for-6, including 0-for-3 from 3-point range (per ESPN Insights).
She made just one free throw and was unable to handle the defense the Italians put up against her throughout the game.
Yahoo Sports noted that Clark has never been held without a field goal in her career.
Stat Muse said the Fever point guard had a “rough” day against the Italian squad, coughing up two turnovers and recording only 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal.
Clark’s miserable night drew more reactions online, with many expressing disbelief over how she went silent after exploding for a double-double two days earlier against China.
A women’s basketball enthusiast shared their thoughts on Clark’s rare bad day on social media: “I have never seen Caitlin play this bad all my life.”
Another believed Clark’s poor performance was the basketball gods’ way of delivering justice for what the Fever star did to the Chinese team in the previous game.
“She is being punished for setting records last game,” he wrote.
One user highlighted that the three-time All-Star was having a rare off-night, writing, “Caitlin Clark did not look good today whatsoever, she looked out of rhythm the entire game!!!”
Meanwhile, some also poked fun at Clark’s miserable performance, linking it to ESPN legend Linda Cohn’s comments suggesting that A’ja Wilson’s last-minute withdrawal from the World Cup roster stemmed from insecurity.
“Imagine thinking that A’ja Wilson would feel insecure around Caitlin Clark. 🤣,” a user opined.
“But they said Aja was ‘jealous ‘of her,” another user added.
Clark was not the only player to blame for Team USA’s lackluster performance against Italy. The entire team shot just 29% from the field, went 1-for-12 from beyond the arc, and were outrebounded 43-42 by a scrappy Italian squad, which never wavered despite falling behind 19-8 in the first quarter.
Team USA will be back in action Monday night against the Czech Republic as they aim to sweep the group stage.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.