Brittney Griner thrown out of game after bumping WNBA referee during fiery outburst

Brittney Griner headed to the locker room earlier than the rest of her Atlanta Dream teammates on Wednesday. 

The Atlanta center was ejected after a referee whistled her for two technical fouls in the second half. Griner was penalized for arguing with and physically contacting a game official. 

The dispute started after Griner attempted to secure a rebound that was contested by Dallas Wings guard Haley Jones. A foul was assigned to Griner, and she then approached the referee.

The verbal exchange with the official quicklUy led to a technical foul. But shortly after the call, Griner appeared to bump the referee — which immediately drew the second technical. Under WNBA rules, a player is automatically removed from a game once they receive two technical fouls.

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Griner quickly began walking towards the tunnel after she was ejected. She finished the game with four points and four rebounds.

Griner has appeared in 25 games so far in her first season with the Dream. The WNBA champion spent the first 11 seasons of her career with the Phoenix Mercury before signing with Atlanta this past offseason.

She entered Wednesday’s game averaging 10.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Those numbers represent career-lows for the 10-time WNBA All-Star.

Griner exited when Atlanta held a razor-thin lead over Dallas. The Dream managed to extend the lead in the fourth quarter, but the Wings responded with an 11-2 run. 

Dream forward Naz Hillmon made a clutch 3-pointer in the game’s final seconds to seal the 88-85 victory.

Paige Bueckers, the No. 1 selection in April’s WNBA Draft, finished the contest with a team-leading 21 points.

The win over the Wings pushed the Dream’s record to 16-11. Atlanta trails only the defending champion New York Liberty in the Eastern Conference standings.

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