For the first time in her professional career, Angel Reese got the better of Caitlin Clark in a nail-biting encounter on Sunday. The 9,872 fans present at the Wintrust Arena witnessed another classic face-off between the two rookies where the 2023 NCAA champion was finally able to overcome a 3-game losing streak against her adversary. However, this time around, it wasn’t the 2× USBWA National Player of the Year who was responsible for Reese’s ferocious onslaught.
To get a clearer picture of the things that transpired, ESPN analysts Elle Duncan and Gary Striewski broke it down recently. While commending Reese, Duncan expressed on The Elle Duncan Show, “The Sky were down like 15 points in the second half. Angel Reese literally takes over the game. Many people would tell you it’s because NaLyssa Smith said you’re too small. She poked the bear. After she poked the bear, Angel Reese absolutely just went off.”
The 3x All-American forward was at her absolute best against the Fever as she delivered her 8th consecutive double-double which comprised a career-high 25 points and 16 rebounds to lead Chicago to an 88-87 win over the visitors. On top of that, she was the main catalyst behind the Sky quashing the 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Anyhow, the outset of this exciting turn of events was the fiery exchange between Reese and Fever’s No.1 NaLyssa Smith.
Smith was entrusted with the responsibility of guarding Reese. The back-and-forth jawing between both these athletes reached its pinnacle when the Chicago rookie responded to the “too small,” comment of Smith. Following this, she orchestrated a 31-15 run in the last 11 minutes. In addition to this, Angel Reese individually matched the Fever’s tally of points and field goals.
via Getty
She then capped off the night with an exclamation point in her post-game interaction with ESPN’s Holly Rowe. She said, “I’m a dog. You can’t teach that.” In the meantime, Caitlin Clark has recently put forth her views on an interesting future scenario with Angel Reese.
Caitlin Clark looking forward to playing alongside Angel Reese
The 6-foot-guard recently spared a thought or two about the possibility of playing with Reese in the 2024 WNBA All-Star Game. Before her Sunday face-off, she said, “A lot of hypotheticals. I think both of us would probably tell you our focus is on playing basketball, and if that works out for the both of us, great, that would be a lot of fun. We’ve never played together.”
The official participants of the All-Star game will be revealed on July 3. The selection criteria are primarily based on fan voting, which is 50% of the final tally. For the rest, the media and the players constitute an equal share of 25%.
There is no denying that supporters from both camps would love to see them play side by side. After experiencing the thrill of them against each other, it will be enticing to see what both these rookies have to offer together. Will the aforementioned fantasy become a reality? Only time will tell.
Stay tuned for more such updates. And to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video.
