The two clubs who memorably squared off against each other in last year’s 2023 NCAA Tournament championship game are preparing for a major Elite Eight rematch tonight. And the two unanimous All-American First Team superstars who got them there have their legacies on the line.
Although it might appear to outside observes that LSU Tigers power forward Angel Reese and Iowa Hawkeyes point guard Caitlin Clark might be bitter on-court nemeses, Reese offered some clarity on the issue over the weekend once their rematch had been determined, per Andrea Adelson of ESPN. Speaking in a press conference after her Tigers bested the UCLA Bruins for a 78-69 comeback win in a Sweet Sixteen matchup on Saturday, Reese explained that their fierce hypercompetitiveness has stayed on the hardwood.
“I don’t think people realize it’s not personal,” Reese explained. “Me and Caitlin Clark don’t hate each other. I want everybody to understand that. It’s just a super-competitive game. Once I get between those lines, there’s no friends. I’m going to talk trash to you. I’m going to do whatever it takes to get in your head the whole entire game, but after the game, we can kick it. I don’t think people really realize that.”
“That’s fine,” Reese continued. “I’ll take the villain role. I’ll take the hit for it, but I know we’re growing women’s basketball. If this is the way we’re going to do it, then this is the way we’re going to do it. You either like it or you don’t.”
Reese’s ethos represents an approach a lot of hoop legends before her have taken. Wilt Chamberlin apparently hosted Bill Russell at his house for six straight Thanksgivings during their playing days, but Russell still took pains to demolish him (as much as he could, anyway) when they played against each other, according to The Ringer’s Jackie Jackie MacMullan.
We don’t know that Reese and Clark have that kind of relationship, but it appears that the two at least have a mutual respect for one another. For her part, Clark reflected on the key similarity between the two senior superstars.
“There’s definitely that competitive fire,” Clark allowed. “Both of us want to win more than anything, and that’s how it should be when you’re a competitor and you get into a situation like this, whether it was the national championship, whether it’s the Elite Eight.”
During last year’s championship meeting, the 34-2 Tigers trounced the 31-7 Hawkeyes, 102-85, to claim the title in front of a sellout crowd of 19,482 fans. Reese was named the 2023 NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. The 6’3″ big, nicknamed “Bayou Barbie,” scored 15 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the floor and 5-of-8 shooting from the free throw line.
Reese also pulled down 10 rebounds, dished out five dimes, swiped three steals, and logged one block. Clark, meanwhile, finished with a game-high 30 points, albeit on an inefficient 9-of-22 shooting line from the field (8-of-19 from deep) and 4-of-5 from the charity stripe. She also chipped in eight assists and grabbed two rebounds.
The most memorable moment, however, was when an amped-up Reese flashed a classic John Cena “You Can’t See Me” hand gesture at Clark as LSU began to pull away early in the fourth quarter. It was a callback to a moment during the Elite Eight when Clark herself had utilized the gesture during her Hawkeyes’ defeat of Louisville. ClutchPoints re-shared the moment recently:
When Reese did it, however, the Internet exploded with takes on her relative sportsmanship, as Rachel Treisman of NPR memorably detailed. Former Pro Bowl quarterback Robert Griffin III captured screen grabs of both moments for some context:
Will we see any other memorable viral moments tonight? Time will tell. Find out for yourself on ESPN and ESPN+. The action tips off at 4 p.m. PT/7 p.m. ET. It could be a close game. As of this writing, DraftKings has the Hawkeyes as -2 favorites.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
The post NCAA Tournament News: LSU’s Angel Reese, Iowa’s Caitlin Clark Discuss Heated Rivalry appeared first on Newsweek.
