The Chicago Sky and Indiana Fever had their second showdown of the WNBA season on Sunday, giving former college rivals Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark another chance to battle it out.
During the matchup, Reese was called for a flagrant foul after a hard hit on Clark while trying to block her shot at the rim. Reese missed the ball completely and instead connected with Clark’s head.
The call was originally just a common foul, but after a video review, the officials upgraded it to a Flagant 1.
Following the Fever’s 91-83 win, both Reese and Clark addressed the hit. Reese called it “a basketball play,” and Clark echoing her comments, saying, “It’s just part of basketball.”
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But both players knew the foul was going to spark conversation, with Reese saying: “I’m always going for the ball. But y’all going to play that clip 20 times before Monday.”
And that’s exactly what happened.
The clip went viral on social media, with some even calling for the suspension of the Sky forward, saying her hit was intentional.
Was Angel Reese’s flagrant foul on Caitlin Clark a ‘basketball play?’
On Monday’s episode of “Speak,” co-host Emmanuel Acho started off with a message to those seeking the suspension.
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“First let me clarify something: Angel Reese should not be suspended for that foul. Let me dispute that wild notion that has been circulating on social media,” Acho said.
The Sky have just two flagrant fouls this season, and both were called after hits on Clark. The first was given to guard Chennedy Carter in their June 1 loss to the Fever, after she delivered a cheap shot to Clark during an inbound play. The second was the hit by Reese.
While the former LSU star has said in the past that she and the former Iowa star do not hate one another, Acho thinks Reese’s recent actions are speaking louder than her words.
“Angel’s actions are starting to speak so loud, we can not hear what is being said,” Acho stated after referencing Reese cheering after the first flagrant hit on Clark and comments on social media about taking on the “bad guy” role.
While “The Herd” host Colin Cowherd does believe Clark is experiencing a form of “hazing,” he did agree with Reese and Clark that hard fouls are just a part of the game.
Cowher: Reese’s foul on Clark is ‘nothing to be outraged about’
“It’s a flagrant foul, she got up and played,” Cowherd said.
“It’s part of basketball … every industry has got a little ugly side … a little tribal side. This is it in basketball.”
While fouls are a part of the game, Cowherd believes the “outrage” that has surrounded the WNBA this season, mainly when it comes to Clark, is a bit overblown.
“The women are figuring out how to handle it. It’s the people who parachute into this sport that never watched it that don’t understand the chippiness that you get in the WNBA,” Cowherd said.
The Sky and Fever have one more regular season faceoff scheduled on June 23 at 3 p.m. ET.
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