Riley Gaines says Target Center staffer tried to shut down her Sophie Cunningham sign

Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve was permitted to wear a "Trans kids belong" shirt on the sideline during Sunday's game against the Indiana Fever.

Fans throughout Target Center held signs supporting their favorite WNBA players.

But when Riley Gaines displayed a small sign reading, "Sophie, thank you — a girl mom," an arena staffer tried to make her put it down.

According to Gaines, the staffer told her the problem was that the sign contained Fever guard Sophie Cunningham's name.

"I checked all the sign policies before I went in there," Gaines told OutKick. "I made sure it was like 11 by 17. That's the sign size you could have. So, I got a ruler out. You better believe I was measuring it."

Gaines attended Sunday's Fever-Lynx game to support Cunningham, who has faced intense criticism since publicly stating that women's sports should be reserved for women.

Cunningham was loudly booed throughout Indiana's 108-100 loss in Minneapolis, while Reeve used the game to make her opposing position clear.

"He said, 'Well, because it has her name on it. It has Sophie's name on it, so you can't have that,'" Gaines recalled.

"My whole section at that point, they were outraged," Gaines said. "They were like, 'You can't tell her she can't have that. There's a hundred signs right here with people's names on it. What do you mean she can't have it?'"

Target Center's published poster and signage policy does not prohibit signs merely because they contain a player's name. The policy states: "As a general rule, posters/signage under 11 x 17 inches are allowed in Target Center, pending individual tour/promoter approval. All posters/signage must be handheld, may not be mounted on sticks or poles, may not be lit or constructed using lighting elements, may not contain offensive language or graphics and may not prevent other guests from seeing the stage/event."

"I absolutely think she had more fans there, or people who at least support her sentiment, than are willing to admit," Gaines said.

Cunningham eventually made a 3-pointer late in the third quarter and received a noticeable cheer despite playing for the visiting team.

By the end of the afternoon, Cunningham was holding the sign herself.