Angel Reese thinks it’s “just competition” when it comes to her and Caitlin Clark.
After the Chicago Sky’s thrilling 88-87 victory over the Indiana Fever on Sunday, ESPN’s Holly Rowe asked Reese about the “budding rivalry” between the rookies.
“It’s just competition,” Reese responded. “I mean, they still got us, they are one up on us. So I’m just happy for the team. And I want to make it about us. Chicago, they came out tonight, so I’m just happy for us.”
Reese, 22, finished with a career-high 25 points and 16 rebounds, guiding the Sky to their first win in three tries against the Fever this season.
Reese, the No. 7 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, has now notched a rookie record eight straight double-doubles.
The Sky forward initiated a comeback from a 15-point second-half deficit.
“I’m a dog; you can’t teach that,” Reese said when asked by Rowe about engineering the rally.
Clark finished the game with 17 points and a franchise-record 13 assists, though some questioned her only taking two shots in the final seven minutes of the game.
The Fever guard was asked about the rivalry between the two rookie phenoms before the game.
“I’m pretty sure the only people that view this as a rivalry is all of you (media). For us, it’s just a game of basketball. That’s what it is. If it’s gonna help move the game forward, absolutely…” Clark said.
Clark retains bragging rights with the Fever winning the first two games against the Sky this season.
Unlike the first two matchups between the teams, Sunday’s game lacked any major physical confrontations.
In their first matchup of the season, Chennedy Carter knocked Clark to the ground with a blindside hip-check in Indiana’s 71-70 win, a foul that was upgraded to a flagrant the following day.
In the second game, Reese committed a flagrant foul by whacking Clark in the head during a 91-83 Indiana triumph.
Clark and Reese have had a rivalry since their college days at Iowa and LSU.
Reese and LSU beat Clark’s Iowa team in the NCAA Championship Game in 2023, with Reese taunting Clark in the final seconds.
Clark scored 41 points in avenging that loss in the Elite Eight in March.
Now, as WNBA rookies, while they continue to be at the center of attention, both are downplaying a rivalry that has helped skyrocket the sport’s popularity.
The fourth and final showdown between the two teams is set for Aug. 30 in Chicago.
