On Sunday, Angel Reese got a Flagrant 1 foul after a rough play against Caitlin Clark in the third quarter. After losing 91-83, Reese said the referees made a mistake.
“It was a basketball play. I can’t control the refs,” Reese said, according to Nicole Auerbach from The Athletic. “They affected the game obviously a lot today. I’m always going for the ball. Y’all are going to play that clip 20 times before Monday.”
Some of Reese’s frustration is understandable since Chicago Sky had more fouls (21) compared to Indiana Fever (17). Indiana also had more free throws (19) than Chicago (14). However, it seems like officials made the right call on Reese. Her arm seemed to hit Clark’s head instead of the ball during the play. Auerbach also mentioned it was “correctly upgraded” from a common foul to a Flagrant 1.
Angel Reese on the foul that got upgraded to a Flagrant 1: "It was a basketball play. I can't control the refs. They affected the game obviously a lot today."
"I'm always going for the ball. Y'all are going to play that clip 20 times before Monday."
— Nicole Auerbach (@NicoleAuerbach)
More Details on Previous Incidents:
In an earlier game this season between these teams, Chennedy Carter from Chicago pushed Clark in the back during an inbound pass. The WNBA later upgraded this action to a Flagrant 1 after initially calling it a common foul because officials didn’t review it during that game.
Considering there might be some tension between both teams, it’s possible that league officials wanted to prevent any further escalation by calling the foul on Reese.
Despite everything, Clark says she isn’t upset about it and has no hard feelings toward Reese.
Fans might think this rivalry is getting intense!
Caitlin Clark on the flagrant 1 foul from Angel Reese: “It’s just part of basketball, it is what it is, she was trying to make a play on the ball.”
— Chloe Peterson (@chloepeterson67)
What do you think about all this drama?
