Angel Reese’s regular-season finale against the New York Liberty got cut super short on Wednesday, Sept. 23, after Sabrina Ionescu caught her with a Flagrant 1 foul to the face. Talk about a scary moment right before the playoffs kick off!
A Nasty Hit And A Playoff-Clinching Win
Seriously, this went down with just 5.6 seconds left in the first half. Ionescu’s elbow inadvertently connected with Reese, who immediately clutched her face. Initially called an offensive foul, the refs upgraded it to a Flagrant 1 after a review. Reese, being the competitor she is, walked to the line and knocked down both free throws before heading back to the locker room. She did return to the bench with 6:19 left in the third quarter, but Dream head coach Karl Smesko wasn’t taking any chances. Even though medical staff cleared her, Smesko decided to play it safe, saying, “We made a decision that it would be smarter for her to sit out the second half.” Despite the scare, the Dream kept their foot on the gas, blowing out the Liberty 83-65 to snag the No. 4 seed in the playoffs and lock up homecourt advantage. That’s their second straight 30-win season, by the way.
Shattering Records All Season Long
Before getting sidelined, Reese still put up 6 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals in just 17 minutes. But those limited minutes barely scratch the surface of the absolute clinic Reese put on this season. She’s averaging a double-double for the third consecutive season, hitting career-highs with 16.6 points, 12.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.8 steals over 42 games. Seriously, she leads the *entire league* in total rebounds, offensive rebounds (4.8 per game), and double-doubles with an insane 32! This woman has been making history all year, becoming the first player in league history to secure 500 rebounds in a single season back on Sept. 19. Not only that, on Aug. 30, her 29th double-double against the Minnesota Lynx set a brand new WNBA single-season double-doubles record. And don’t forget Aug. 24, when she dropped a WNBA single-game record 26 total rebounds (18 defensive, 8 offensive) against the Los Angeles Sparks, while also setting a new single-season rebounding record with 458 total boards. Wild stuff!
So, what’s next for the Dream and their record-breaking forward? The coach says the injury shouldn’t mess with her playoff availability, which is HUGE because Reese is set to make her very first WNBA playoff appearance. With homecourt locked for their first series, the Dream look ready to roll into the postseason. You know Reese will be fired up and ready to unleash all that energy on the court when the playoffs start in just four days.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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