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Indiana Fever star Lexie Hull and Seattle Storm forward Gabby Williams collided when the two WNBA teams met on Tuesday.
In the days since, Hull has developed a pair of black eyes. Fever coach Stephanie White said the marks underscored Hull’s grit.
“Every time I see her, I’m like, ‘Oh, poor Lexie,'” White said on Friday. “But you know, I think it really epitomizes Lexie’s toughness when you look at her, and you see those two black eyes. I mean, she’s tough as nails, you know.”
“She plays all out, every possession, all the time, and sometimes the result is two black eyes, and so I smile every time I see her. But it definitely is a picture-perfect viewpoint of the toughness that she brings.”
In the first quarter of Tuesday’s game, Hull and Williams both fell to the floor in visible pain moments after knocking heads. Trainers tended to the athletes, who were both able to eventually get up and walk without assistance. Williams was able to check back into the game later in the opening quarter.
CAITLIN CLARK’S RETURN TO FEVER LINEUP REMAINS MYSTERY
Hull made her way back to the Fever’s bench after spending some time in the locker room area. Hull appeared to have a knot on her forehead once she re-entered the game.
She finished the game with five points and nine rebounds over 23 minutes. The Fever cruised to a 95-75 win.
While the swelling did eventually subside, Hull was left with contusions under her eyes. Hull said she quickly got comfortable with the fact that the condition would be something she would have to deal with for the time being.
“I put a patch (on the knot), slept with it, the next day, woke up and I was like, ‘OK, the bump is almost gone, but now I have two black eyes,’ so that was tragic,” Hull said. “But I mean, it’s at this point that unfortunately, I won’t be able to hide it. People know, so just rolling with it.”
Hull said trainers did their due diligence to make sure she did not suffer a facial fracture or any other serious injury. She confirmed she had “been fully checked out” before she checked back into Tuesday’s game.
“Honestly, when it happened, I was relieved, because I could feel myself, like I was good to go, like I felt completely with it,” Hull said. “They did all the tests they needed to do, and put ice on it right away try to keep the swelling down, but I felt good knowing that, like, obviously, it could have been a lot worse. And I’m grateful for the people online wanting to check on me and make sure that I’m OK, but I am OK, I’ve been fully checked out.”
After Tuesday’s 20-point win over the Storm, the Fever held on for a one-point victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Friday. Next up, the Golden State Valkyries are scheduled to host Indiana on Sunday.
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