Insult to injury: Caitlin Clark's playoff debut ends with loss and a black eye

Caitlin Clarks WNBA playoff debut was made on Sunday afternoon when the Indiana Fever traveled to go against the Connecticut Sun in the first round of the postseason.

It was a usual outing for Clark as she struggled from the field all night and the Fever couldn't find a rhythm against a veteran stacked team.

She finished the day with 11 points after the rough start while also dishing eight assists.

Early in the game Clark got poked in the eye by DiJonai Carrington.

It happened when Clark was passing the ball and Carrington got in her face to apply pressure on the ball and got her in the face. There was no foul called on the play and as the game progressed you were able to see Clark's black eye develop.

Clark and Carrington had an interaction earlier this season when she mocked Clark for flopping and it went viral on social media. Carrington finished the game with 14 points and five rebounds in 34 minutes.

Prior to the game Clark was announced as the AP Rookie of the Year and was greeted by an excited crowd to see Clark in action. Many of the fans in the crowd were wearing Clark apparel and cheered her on through the struggle.

The first 16 minutes of the game were back and forth until the Sun took over and closed the opening 20 minutes on a 12-2 run and didn't turn back. Indiana is going up against a experienced Sun team who have 222 playoff games under their belt compared to the Fever's 19, and none among the starters.

In the second half the Sun were in complete control as they were led by Alyssa Thomas' fourth career triple-double in the playoffs and 15h overall with 12 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds. DeWanna Bonner also led Connecticut scorers with 22 points as they routed past Indiana 93-69 in game one of the best-of-three series.