Brittney Griner excluded from WNBA game after near-fight with Rickea Jackson

Brittney Griner's night ended in frustration on Tuesday and ended in an ejection after she got into a scuffle with Los Angeles Sparks rookie Rickea Jackson that almost escalated into a physical altercation.

Griner, 33, had to be restrained as her teammates tried to calm the WNBA star before she and Jackson, 23, struck. Griner appeared to pump her right fist before players and coaches jumped between her and Jackson.

Griner and Jackson were both ejected from the game.

The incident occurred just before halftime on a Phoenix free throw attempt when Griner attempted to block Jackson and her teammate Li Yueru. Griner appeared to hit Jackson with her forearm, then turned and threw her elbow toward Jackson's face after the two became tangled. Jackson and Griner then began shoving each other before teammates and coaches intervened.

“It developed very quickly,” said the match commentator.

Griner left the game with 14 points and three rebounds. The ten-time WNBA All Star currently leads her team with 6.5 rebounds per game.

It was a great year for Griner, despite an at times frustrating season that saw the Mercury slip to 19-20 in the WNBA standings.

Griner and her wife Cherelle Griner welcomed their first son together, baby Bash, in July.

“He's unbelievable,” Griner told CBS Sports earlier this summer. “They said that as soon as you see her, everything you thought was important goes out the window. And that's exactly what happened.”

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She and Cherelle, a lawyer, have been married since 2019 after first meeting at Baylor University, where they both studied.

And just weeks after becoming a mother for the first time, Griner flew to Paris to help the U.S. national team win its seventh consecutive Olympic gold medal (the team's ninth gold medal since women's basketball was introduced to the Olympics in 1976).

The Olympics were a milestone for the two-time AP Player of the Year. Although she won three gold medals overall with Team USA, these were her first Olympics since being detained in Russia for 10 months, and Griner was overcome with emotion after winning again in Paris.

Griner could be seen shedding tears as the “Star Spangled Banner” played throughout the arena after she and Team USA won the gold medal.

“My country fought for my return. And I was able to bring home gold for my country,” she told reporters afterwards. “There is simply no better feeling.”