Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark Trash Talking All Part of Controversial End to NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament
DALLAS, Texas — The NCAA women's basketball championship in Dallas, Texas was well-attended, respected and played as the women's sport has boomed with popularity the past few seasons. More than 19,000 fans attended the title game where LSU beat Iowa 102-85, but the big game wasn't without controversy and trash talk.
The matchup was highly anticipated as Iowa was coming off a Big Ten Tournament win and a huge defeat over the undefeated and reigning NCAA titleholder South Carolina in the Final Four. LSU only lost two games this season to South Carolina and then Tennessee in the SEC Tournament. Then, the Tigers knocked off 1-seed Virginia Tech in the Big Dance to advance to the title game.
Apr 2, 2023; Dallas, TX, USA; LSU Lady Tigers guard Flau'jae Johnson (4) lifts up LSU Lady Tigers head coach Kim Mulkey during the second half against the Iowa Hawkeyes during the final round of the Women's Final Four NCAA tournament at the American Airlines Center.
© Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Perhaps the players that drew in fans to American Airlines Center for the Final Four was junior Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark and Tigers sophomore forward Angel Reese. Clark is known as the Big Ten and AP Player of the Year while Reese also put up a tremendous performance this season averaging 23 points and 15.4 rebounds per game, which is second best in the nation.
However, these pair of talented players have big personalities and have either been criticized or celebrated for it all season long across social media. Clark has been seen taunting teams on the court when she swishes a deep three, and Reese is just as expressive on the floor.
In the title game, Reese was caught on camera pointing at her ring finger in Clark's direction, who claimed she didn't know what was going on.
"Honestly, I have no idea," Clark said in a post game press conference. "I was just trying to get to the handshake line and shake hands and be grateful that my team was in that position. That's all you can do is hold your head high, be proud of what you did."
Clark went on to say she received kind words from LSU head coach Kim Mulkey, who also sparked controversy of her own in the title game.
The legendary coach, who's now won four national championships with both Baylor and now LSU, was seen walking all over the court while the clock was running to the point where an official lightly pushed her out of the way.
Mulkey didn't address that in the post game press conference, but Reese did talk about the criticism she herself gets on social media.
"Twitter is going to go on a rage every time, and I'm happy," Reese said. "I feel like I've helped grow women's basketball this year. I'm super happy and excited, so I'm looking forward to celebrating in the next season.
"Twitter can say what Twitter can say. I love reading those comments. I have all the screenshots of what everybody has said about me all season. What are you going to say now?"
Mulkey didn't have much to add about the Twitter rage and appeared put out with questions related to the topic in her post game press conference.
"If you're on social media and hiding behind a computer, I don't like you," Mulkey said. "If you want to face me eyeball to eyeball and disagree with me on things, I respect you more.
"I know nothing about Twitter, Facebook. I have accounts. You'll see I have accounts. I don't touch those. My coaches do it for me, so I can't help you in any area of what was said."
Fans across social media, specifically Twitter, were criticizing Reese's unsportsmanlike attitude. However, Clark has been in the same boat in other major games this season. In Iowa's loss to Indiana on Feb. 9, Clark flew past the Hoosiers' bench, putting up a 'three' sign next to her eye.
However, she wasn't gloating much during the title game. She actually gave credit to LSU's 11 three-pointers and said the Tigers deserved to win. Hawkeye coach Lisa Bluder was also quick to praise LSU.
"I just want to congratulate LSU," Bluder said. "I thought they played a phenomenal game. They shot the ball really, really well today..."
"I'm so proud of my team. I'm proud of the women they are. I'm proud of what they stand for. The Iowa fans that came here in droves, I'm so thankful for them. I'm thankful that I get to coach at a university like the University of Iowa."
Apr 2, 2023; Dallas, TX, USA; LSU Lady Tigers forward LaDazhia Williams (0) shoots the ball against the Iowa Hawkeyes during the NCAA Women's Basketball Final Four National Championship at American Airlines Center.
© Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The trash talk is part of the game whether fans or the teams themselves agree with it or not. However, the title game also brought light to what both announcers and fans called a game of poor officiating.
Clark picked up her third foul by the second quarter and her fourth by the third, which was a controversial technical for tossing a ball behind her toward the hoop and not passing it to a referee.
"I thought they called it very, very tight," Clark said. "I don't know about the two push-offs in the second quarter. I'm sure they saw that I pushed off and they called it and whatnot, and then hit with the technical foul in the third for throwing the ball under the basket."
Official Lisa Jones told a reporter why the technical was called on Clark.
"Iowa received a delay of game warning in the third period at the 7:28 mark for batting the ball away after a made basket, causing a delay. The second offense was when No. 22 from lowa picked up the ball and failed to immediately pass the ball to the nearest official after the whistle was blown. Rule reference — Rule 10, Section 12, Article 3K. The definition of the delay can be found in Rule 4, Section 9, Article 1F, by failing to and it reads, attempting to gain an advantage by interfering with the ball after a goal, or by failing to immediately pass the ball to the nearest official after the whistle is blown."
Clark wasn't the only one stopped by a whistle. Fifth year center Monika Czinano picked up early fouls and eventually fouled out in her last collegiate game ever along with senior forward/guard McKenna Warnock.
"I can't comment on the officials," Bluder said. "It's very frustrating because I feel like I can't talk to them. They won't even listen. That's what's frustrating is there wasn't even a conversation that could be had.
"When your two seniors have to sit on the bench — they don't know they're seniors. I get it. But those two women didn't deserve it. I don't think so. And then Caitlin getting a T. I don't know. It's too bad."
LSU was also getting the whistle blown on them too as Reese had two fouls by the second quarter off of a questionable call on her trying to steal the ball from Iowa's Hannah Stuelke. Reese finished the game with three fouls while her team ended with 18 compared to Iowa's 19.
Even with trash talking and poor officiating, the title game was one to remember as the Tigers won their first national championship and did so shooting an incredible 54.3 percent from the field and 64.7 percent from the three-point line. For the Hawkeyes, Clark scored a record 191 points in the NCAA Tournament, the most of any men's or women's player in history.
Through tears of joy, Mulkey celebrated her talented Tigers as her LSU squad got the final say on an exceptional 2022-23 women's basketball season.
Apr 2, 2023; Dallas, TX, USA; LSU Lady Tigers head coach Kim Mulkey celebrates with a trophy after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes during the final round of the Women's Final Four NCAA tournament at the American Airlines Center.
© Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
'They just blessed me," Mulkey said. "They're ballers. They get on each other. I don't know how we did it. Defense and rebounding carried us a lot this year. I can't tell you defense carried us today, but you're playing against a generational talent in Clark, so you knew you'd better score the ball with them, and we scored the ball from all positions today."
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