The Indiana Fever's injury-plagued season continued Sunday when guard Sophie Cunningham had to be helped off the floor with a right knee injury early in the team's historic comeback win over the Connecticut Sun. Fever coach Stephanie White did not have an immediate update on Cunningham, who will undergo an MRI on Monday. 

Early in the second quarter, Cunningham slid over on the baseline to provide help against Sun guard Bria Hartley, who threw a pass to the corner that was picked off by Lexie Hull. After getting rid of the ball, Hartley fell down and crashed into Cunningham's right leg. 

Cunningham immediately collapsed to the ground and grabbed for her right knee in obvious pain. The Fever's medical staff quickly arrived at her side, and her teammates and coaches formed a circle around her. After a brief assessment, Cunningham was helped to her feet and to the locker room. 

White said that her initial reaction was "holy shit" because of the way that Cunningham fell and how she was holding her knee. 

"At the time, it's like, 'crap,' and then you go down there and see her and it's like OK, just want her to be able to calm down and be able to regroup, and then it turns to problem solving," White said. "How do we put ourselves in a position to win? What do we need to do? I think that's how I survive."

It's too early to know Cunningham's diagnosis or a timeline for her return, but her initial reaction is concerning. Cunningham had previously missed five games this season due to ankle injuries in May and June. 

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Jack Maloney

After spending her first six seasons with the Phoenix Mercury, Cunningham was traded to the Fever in the offseason. Due in part to her injuries, it took Cunningham some time to find her groove with the Fever, but she had emerged as a key cog on both ends of the floor in recent weeks. 

Since the All-Star break, Cunningham was averaging 12.2 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.1 steals on 55.1/52.8/90.9 shooting splits. During that stretch, the Fever had a plus-1.8 net rating with Cunningham on the floor and a minus-3.5 net rating when she sat. Only Aliyah Boston and Kelsey Mitchell had better on-off splits. 

The Fever had high hopes for this season, but have been beset by injuries. Most notably, Caitlin Clark has been limited to 13 game due to three separate soft tissue injuries. She has not played since July 15 and does not have a return timeline with just weeks remaining in the regular season. Earlier this month, Aari McDonald (broken foot) and Sydney Colson (torn ACL) were both ruled out for the remainder of the season. The last thing the Fever need at this point is a long-term absence for Cunningham. 

With Sunday's win, the Fever improved to 19-16. While they remain in seventh place, they are now 2½ games up on the ninth-place Los Angeles Sparks with nine games remaining on the season.