WNBA Fans Pile on Angel Reese’ Contrasting Responses to Caitlin Clark, Alyssa Thomas Fouls

Alyssa Thomas got laid out by an Angel Reese screen and proceeded to send her to the floor, inviting a referee review.

WNBA Fans Pile on Angel Reese’ Contrasting Responses to Caitlin Clark, Alyssa Thomas Fouls

Angel Reese, Alyssa Thomas

The Chicago Sky lost their fourth game on a trot to the Phoenix Mercury on Tuesday. The game, played in Phoenix as the Sky continue their Western Conference road trip, finished with a 94-89 score. Angel Reese was able to reach the significant milestone of 500 points and 500 rebounds in her WNBA career. She finished with 13 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks.

Angel Reese was also involved in a contentious moment that took place during the second quarter of the game. She got tangled up with Olympian and All-Star Alyssa Thomas as the latter set a screen. Perhaps Thomas was tired of her overly handsy and physical play through the game. She responded by angrily holding on to Reese while still running. Thomas kept hold of Reese and sent her flying to the floor.

The referees got together and adjudged a flagrant 1 foul penalty on Alyssa Thomas, and deservedly so. Her actions in trying to bring down Angel Reese were clearly a non-basketball play and driven by frustration. Thomas already has a history of getting tangled up – she was ejected for another physical foul on Reese last season. Thomas also got tangled up with Caitlin Clark last season in a Sun vs Fever game.

While Reese had gotten extremely angry and confrontational after Caitlin Clark’s hard foul last week, she was a lot more subdued in her reaction to the way Alyssa Thomas tried to trip her up. One could even say that her disproportionate response was somewhat hypocritical, considering Clark’s foul wasn’t even close to as dangerous as what Alyssa Thomas attempted to subject her to. This was the narrative that WNBA Twitter is questioning Reese for

Alyssa Thomas had a monster game for the Mercury, notching 10 points, 15 assists, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks. She made history with her 15 assists, moving into 12th place on the WNBA’s all-time assists list with 1,503 career assists, surpassing Tamika Catchings’ record of 1,488. Thomas also became the first player in WNBA history to record at least 10 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds in each of the first 5 games of a season, solidifying her status as one of the league’s top players.

Alyssa Thomas backs Angel Reese after the Indiana Fever are given a clean chit

The tension between Reese and Thomas during the game was palpable, with Reese sending Thomas to the floor and Thomas later mocking Reese after scoring. However, Thomas showed a sense of solidarity with Reese when discussing the investigation at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. The Indiana Fever have been given the clear signal by the WNBA, who found no wrongdoing or racial chants in any video footage.

Alyssa Thomas spoke in support of Reese, who was the target of the supposed chants,

I think as a league, we stick together. As players, she (Angel Reese) said she heard it, and we believe her. I believe her. I’ve heard a lot of things from the fans. I think it’s about basketball, and I think people have taken it too far. From the games and they can say and do anything they want, and it’s unacceptable.

It’s something that we’re gonna continue to fight for, regardless of whether they found anything or not. I know there are a lot of players that have heard a lot of things, so we’re just gonna continue to support each other in that manner.

Also Read: