Saniya Rivers stood up for teammate Marina Mabrey after her heated exchange with Marine Johannes during the Connecticut Sun's matchup against the New York Liberty. Rivers pushed Johannes, who was not happy with Mabrey's physicality during Monday's game.In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, things got heated between Mabrey and Johannes late in the third quarter. The Sun guard tried to set a screen on the French star, who didn't appreciate the extra elbow to the gut. She retaliated by pushing off Mabrey as the referees called for a foul.Rivers quickly came to the aid of her teammate and pushed Johannes, with players, coaches and officials separating all those involved. The referees might have some PTSD due to the Sun's propensity to get into scuffles during games this season. Here's the video of the incident. Marina Mabrey and Marine Johannes were called for a double foul, while Saniya Rivers was assessed with a technical foul. Breanna Stewart, who returned from her 13-game absence, sank the technical free throw. Rivers didn't try to de-escalate the situation, but she got herself involved by pushing Johannes. The Connecticut Sun are starting to have a reputation following another altercation. They made headlines early in the season after being physical with Caitlin Clark. Sophie Cunningham returned the favor, and it turned into one of the most viral clips for the WNBA.In fairness to the Sun, they are getting away with the physicality because the referees are letting them. The number of times players, coaches and fans have called for the league to improve officiating this season is too many to count. Marina Mabrey and the Sun fell short against defending champsMarina Mabrey and the Sun fell short against defending champs. (Photo: IMAGN)The Connecticut Sun entered Monday's game on a shocking three-game winning streak. They were up against the New York Liberty, who were trying to end a two-game losing skid. While many predicted a blowout for the Liberty, the Sun were competitive the entire game. Marina Mabrey, who requested a trade away from Connecticut in the offseason, finished with 16 points and five assists, as they fell short 81-79. Leila Lacan had 22 points and three rebounds, plus the opportunity to force overtime. Lacan stole the ball from Breanna Stewart and was a layup away from tying the game. However, Sabrina Ionescu blocked her shot as the Liberty earned the hard-fought win.