The WNBA season got started a few days ago, and the matchup that everyone had their eyes on was the Indiana Fever against the Chicago Sky. WNBA fans across the country tuned into this one to see Caitlin Clark go up against Angel Reese. The two of them have had some heated matchups throughout their college and pro careers, and Saturday's game got intense as well despite the lopsided 93-58 victory for the Fever.
In the third quarter of the game, things for chippy between Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. Reese had an open layup, so Clark quickly closed in and committed a foul to make sure that she earned her points at the free throw line. It ended up being upgraded to a flagrant foul, and Reese wasn't happy with Clark.
The two players were quickly separated, and nothing serious went down. Still, it was another example of things getting a bit intense when these two players go up against each other. Colin Cowherd thinks that their rivalry is good for the sport.
“People just aren't used to the heated intensity of a great rivalry,” Colin Cowherd said. “But in the NBA, we had MJ (Michael Jordan) and the Pistons. We had [Larry] Bird and Magic [Johnson]. We're kind of used to it. As Caitlin Clark and Indiana hammered the Chicago Sky, it was like four and a half minutes left in the third, there was a foul. It should not have been upgraded to a flagrant foul. It was a foul. And I really think if you truly respect women's basketball, let them play, sort of like guys. Rivalries equal ratings. Sports are better with intensity. Animosity is part of it. This is okay. Who cares if Angel Reese doesn't like Caitlin Clark, it's not soccer. I don't need Jersey swaps.”
Rivalries are part of what makes sports so special, and the one between Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark goes back a few years. When Clark was at Iowa and Reese was at LSU, they met up in the national championship game. When Reese and the Tigers won, there was some mocking done towards Clark. Since then, there has been a little bit of a rivalry between the two stars, and it continues to build in the WNBA.
Clark and Reese have both been a big reason for the recent growth of the WNBA, and a little bit of chippiness between the two of them might be good for the league. People like rivalries and they like heated matchups. Both players provide a lot of entertainment when they get together on the court.