The injury troubles for the Indiana Fever persisted as guard Sophie Cunningham was declared out for the remainder of the season on Tuesday due to a right knee injury.
Cunningham sustained her injury during the second quarter of the Indiana Fever’s 99-93 overtime victory against the Connecticut Sun on Sunday, when Bria Hartley collided with her while attempting a pass. She was subsequently ruled out for the rest of the game and later diagnosed with an MCL tear, as reported by various media outlets.
Indiana (19-16) has been without star guard Caitlin Clark (right groin) for the 13th consecutive game. Additionally, the Indiana Fever has also lost guards Aari McDonald (foot) and Sydney Colson (knee) earlier this month due to season-ending injuries.
In order to fill the void left by Sophie Cunningham, the Indiana Fever has signed veteran guard Shey Peddy to a seven-day hardship contract and has also released rookie guard Kyra Lambert.
Sophie Cunningham, who celebrated her 29th birthday on Saturday, recorded averages of 8.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 25.2 minutes over 30 games (13 starts) during her inaugural season with the Indiana Fever. Earlier this season, she attracted national attention when she defended Clark during an in-game confrontation.
Cunningham spent her first six seasons in the WNBA with the Phoenix Mercury (2019-24), where she averaged 7.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 22.8 minutes across 182 regular-season games (92 starts). Additionally, she averaged 5.8 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 19.5 minutes in 15 playoff games (six starts) for Phoenix.
The Mercury drafted Sophie Cunningham in the second round (13th overall) of the 2019 WNBA Draft from Missouri. On February 2, Indiana acquired her as part of a 10-team trade.
