Last year, when the NY Liberty won Game 5 and the championship trophy, Cheryl Reeve openly fired back. “That s— was stolen from us,” she shared in the postgame press conference, indicating the disparities over foul calls. While the year has changed, it seems the victim has, too. Now, it’s Stephanie White enduring the same fate as Reeve, though quite early.

As Indy went 2-2 in head-to-head games this season against the Atlanta Dream, a tough battle was quite expected. Especially since the Dream had home-court advantage and held the second-best defensive rating in the league. But when the matchup unfolded, it wasn’t the team that kept worrying White; instead, it was the refs.

So naturally, the first question in the postgame press conference following the loss was about the frustration White went through. And as always, HC didn’t hold her tongue. “Very frustrating… Nobody likes to use their challenges in the first half, especially when they’re successful. Look, it is what it is. This is not anything that’s new,” she expressed. And yes, they’ve been quite successful this season, with a 24-20 record and the #6 seed, despite going through five season-ending injuries.

The disparity over foul calls forced the HC to use both her challenges by the 1:45 mark of the second quarter, as both her calls against Lexie Hull and Boston were overturned. But even then, nothing changed as frustrations continued into the second half. Once again, there were no calls for Hull, whereas Boston was given a questionable foul. And finally, in the fourth quarter, Stephanie White lost her cool. As she saw Dream guard Rhyne Howard grabbing Shey Peddy and spinning her underneath the basket, she expected at least a foul to be called.

But none came from the refs, and not just White but the entire Fever bench reacted. White followed the refs along the sideline, expressing her displeasure while play continued. Obviously, the refs didn’t like it and signaled for a tech, after which White turned back to the bench.

But the agitated coach just couldn’t stop, and she was seen walking back toward midcourt, where Kelsey Mitchell held her back. Both Boston and CC then walked over to bring her back to the bench. But no—it wasn’t just the head coach! Even Sims was T’d up moments later against the refs. As she dove after a loose ball, she appeared to look at the refs as she slapped the ball away.

But come on, the headline’s nothing new!

Stephanie White vs the whistles.

Throughout the season, Indy expressed frustration with refs nearly every time over their decisions. But the one that everyone noticed was the Fever’s 88-71 win over the Connecticut Sun on June 17 that included five techs called in one game. While scratches and grabbing were already visible, physicality reached its peak when Jacy Sheldon poked Caitlin Clark in the eye, which drew players in. Marina Mabrey puffed her chest and knocked CC to the floor. As a result, Sheldon received a Flagrant 1, while CC, Mabrey, and Charles were given techs.

But it didn’t stop there. Sophie stood up for her teammate, grabbing Sheldon’s head while she was going for a layup, which left Sheldon on the ground. She immediately got up, and the fight spilled over. Then came the postgame press conference, where White expressed the officials’ lack of control over fouls. “I think it was pretty obvious that stuff was brewing, right? When the officials don’t get control of the ballgame, when they allow that stuff to happen, and it’s been happening all season long, all season long….It’s not just this game. It’s been happening all season long,” she shared back then.

Ever since, disparity over calls has become quite a common sight, and the August 12 game against the Dallas Wings was no different. White was spotted going up to the refs multiple times during breaks to get clarity over foul calls. Then frustrations boiled over, and she initiated a challenge on a foul on AB.

It happened when Li Yueru clamped AB’s arm with her elbow while going for the ball. She then continued to drag her arm, and AB wasn’t able to free herself from Yueru’s grip. “I think Aliyah Boston is the worst-officiated post player in the league,” White said in the postgame press conference as the challenge was overturned. “She never gets a call. And, you know, there’s a double standard there, certainly.”