Caitlin Clark was struck on the head by Angel Reese and subjected to more rough treatment by the Chicago Sky on Sunday, causing Dave Portnoy to hit out at the WNBA team.
Clark and the Indiana Fever took on Chicago for the first time on Sunday since the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft was brutally bodychecked by Chennedy Carter earlier this month.
The Fever won the first meeting 71-70 at home on June 1 but the game was overshadowed by Sky guard Carter’s hip-check foul on Clark before an inbounds play.
It was ruled a common foul, only to be upgraded to a flagrant-one foul the day after the game.
But, on Sunday, it didn’t take long for Clark to be targeted by Reese, Carter and their Sky teammate Dana Evans again.
Earlier, Chennedy Carter and her Sky teammate Dana Evans combined to foul Clark
Evans pinned back Clark’s arm as she tried to shoot while Carter held onto her after releasing
Reverse angle clearly shows Clark being fouled as she dribbled towards the hoop early on
Carter refused to let go of Clark’s arm and threw it up in the air before saying something to her
Barstool chief Dave Portnoy took to X to accuse the Chicago Sky of ‘doing Chicago Sky stuff’
As Clark drove towards the basket in the first quarter, Evans snuck her arm through Clark’s and hooked and held her to stop her momentum.
But when Clark gestured to the referee for a foul, Evans threw her arm away from Clark and appeared to say something before smiling in the Fever star’s direction.
It promoted Barstool Sports chief Portnoy to post a clip of the play on X and write: ‘Chicago Sky doing Chicago Sky stuff’.
After the Reese foul, Portnoy posted: ‘Shocker. Angelo Reese and the Sky doing Angel Reese and Sky stuff. By the way Caitlin is cooking them.’
Then, in the third quarter, Clark was jumping for the basket when Reese smashed her in the side of the head.
The ball had already clearly gone beyond the former LSU player, who continued to hit Clark on the head with her forearm.
The bodycheck earlier this month, and Carter’s stated lack of regret for it, ignited several days of social media controversy that divided fans and led to accusations of racism from both sides.
Portnoy is a huge fan of Clark and recently ranted about her snub from the Olympics roster
Speaking before Sunday’s game, Carter said: ‘I’m just ready to play today’s game.
‘I don’t care what people are saying. I don’t care what they’re talking about. I’m locked in.’
Clark has aimed to stay above the fray, but recently she made clear she did not want her name to be used to push political agendas. She also said she did not need Carter to apologize for the foul.
‘Basketball’s competitive. I get it,’ Clark said. ‘Sometimes your emotions get the best of you – it happened to me multiple times throughout the course of my career. People are competitive.
‘(Carter is) having a tremendous season. She’s played great basketball – in my eyes, probably in first place for Sixth Player of the Year.’
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Source: USA Today
