INDIANAPOLIS — Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese agreed on one thing Saturday: Their minor dustup during the WNBA regular-season season opener for their teams was just the result of a basketball play.
Aside from that, Clark did most of the talking.
The reigning rookie of the year downplayed the on-court fracas that occurred with 4:38 left in the third quarter, which spurred Clark’s Indiana Fever to a 93-58 victory over Reese’s Chicago Sky. It started with Reese grabbing an offensive rebound and Clark slapping Reese’s arm hard enough to jar the ball loose and knock the Sky forward to floor.
When Reese got up, she tried to confront Clark before Indiana center Aliyah Boston stepped in between the two players. Clark’s third personal foul was upgraded to a flagrant 1, while Boston and Reese each drew technical fouls after a replay review by the referees.
“Let’s not make it something that it’s not,” Clark said after posting the third triple-double of her pro career. “It was just a good play on the basketball. I’m not sure what the ref saw to upgrade it, and that’s up to their discretion. It’s a take foul to put them at the free-throw line. I’ve watched a lot of basketball in my life, that’s exactly what it was. I wasn’t trying to do anything malicious. That’s not the type of player I am.”