Angel Reese Defends Action Toward Caitlin Clark After LSU National Title Win; Calls Out Double Standard After Being ‘Unapologetic’ Toward Her
CNN
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LSU star Angel Reese defended the gesture she made toward Iowa Hawkeyes’ Caitlin Clark late in the Tigers’ first NCAA women’s basketball championship win on Sunday, saying, “I don’t take disrespect lightly.”
Reese could be seen approaching Clark before moving his open hand in front of his face – popularized by WWE star John Cena to mean “you can’t see me” – before pointing to his ring finger in a gesture that some interpreted as a reference to where his newly acquired championship ring might be located.
Clark did a similar thing gesture to another player earlier in the tournament.
The move sparked much debate, particularly on social media. Some criticized Reese, while others defended his actions, noting that there had been no public outrage in response to Clark’s gesture earlier in the tournament.
Sports journalist Jose de Jesus Ortiz called Reese’s actions “classless,” while former ESPN anchor Keith Olbermann called Reese an “idiot” for the gesture.
During the post-win press conference, Reese referenced the difference in reaction she received to her move compared to Clark.
“All year I’ve been criticized for who I am. I didn’t fit the narrative,” Reese said. “I didn’t fit the box that you want me to be in. I’m too hood. I’m too ghetto. Y’all told me that all year. But when other people do it, you don’t say anything.”
“So this is for girls who are like me. For girls who want to express their beliefs. This is you, without any complexes. And that’s why I did it tonight. It was bigger than me tonight. And Twitter is going to go wild every time.
“And I’m happy. I feel like I’ve helped grow women’s basketball this year. (…) I can’t wait to celebrate and see what next season is like.”
Reese scored 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the 102-85 victory and won the Women’s March Madness Most Outstanding Player award.
During the postgame broadcast, Reese referenced the similar gesture Clark made to a Louisville opponent in the Elite Eight.
During the same game, Clark allegedly told an opponent, “You’re down by 15 points. Shut up,” according to Bleacher Report.
“Caitlin Clark is a hell of a player, but I don’t take disrespect lightly,” Reese said. “She disrespected Alexis (Morris) … and I wanted to steal her skin. But I had a moment at the end of her match. I was in my bag, I was in my moment.”
After the championship game, Clark herself said she didn’t notice anything at the time.
“I was just trying to get to the handshake line and shake hands and be grateful that my team is in this position,” Clark said at the postgame press conference. “All the credit in the world goes to LSU. They’ve been great. They deserve it. They’ve had a great season.”
“Kim Mulkey (LSU head coach) coached them really well. She’s one of the best basketball coaches of all time, and it shows. She said nothing but really nice things to me in line to shake my hand, so I’m really grateful for that, too.”
“But honestly, I have no idea. I was just trying to spend the last few moments on the field with the five people I started 93 games with and savor every second of it.”
LSU head coach Mulkey said she had “no idea” what happened.
In Pictures: LSU Wins Women’s Basketball National Title
Among those defending Reese on social media were ESPN’s Holly Rowe and former NBA star Etan Thomas.
“People hate Angel Reese or Caitlin Clark. Stop it. Young women who are confident and not shy about it should be celebrated, NOT hated. Get used to it,” Rowe said. wrote on Twitter.
Former Washington Wizards, Oklahoma City Thunder and Atlanta Hawks player Thomas wrote: “Wait a minute!!! It was cute when Caitlin Clark did it. You had no problem with it. So don’t get all outraged and call it class and sportsmanship when Angel Reese does the same thing. We don’t have double standards here.”
Reese said the negative reaction on social media throughout the season helped fuel his excellent season, as he finished averaging 23.0 points and 15.4 rebounds in his first season with LSU after transferring from Maryland.
“Twitter can say whatever it wants,” she said. “I love reading those comments. I have all the screenshots of what everyone has said about me all season long. What are you going to say now?”
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