Angel Reese was fined $1,000 after her first professional game against Caitlin Clark

Angel Reese leads the WNBA in offensive rebounds per game. PHOTO BY: Chicago Sky

Angel Reese played in a matchup with her college rival Caitlin Clark on Saturday, and afterwards was fined for not making a media appearance.

Clark, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA draft, got the better of Reese this time around in a 71-70 win for the Indiana Fever over the Chicago Sky. Neither rookie particularly put on a show in the game. Clark scored 11 points while shooting 36.4% and Reese scored eight points while shooting 22.2%.

Reese did put up a career-high 13 total rebounds in the loss though, including eight offensive rebounds. Reese leads the WNBA in offensive rebounds by a wide margin. She averages five per game while the next closest player, Napheesa Collier, averages 3.3 per game.

After the game, Reese didn’t make herself available for media interviews and was fined $1,000 by the WNBA.

“In addition, the Sky organization has been fined $5,000 for failing to ensure that all players comply with WNBA media policies,” the league also said in a statement it released on Sunday.  Reese later said she was taking accountability for the fine.

“That was something on my behalf that I wasn’t able to do at the moment just because of the timeline of it but [I’m] making sure moving forward I’ll take time out for you guys,” Reese said.

On Monday, Reese spoke about how the women’s game has grown during a media appearance. She wanted to make it clear that the growth in popularity in women’s basketball wasn’t just because of Clark.

“I’ll look back in 20 years and be like: ‘Yeah, the reason why we’re watching women’s basketball is not just because of one person, it’s because of me too, and I want you to realize that,” Reese said. “Like it’s just not cause of one person. A lot of us have done so much for this game.”

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Will Nickel

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