The roar was audible — and atypical.
As the general public handle announcer launched the starters for the visiting Chicago Sky, many inside a Barclays Heart crowd of 16,081 showered Angel Reese with the sorts of cheers usually reserved for the house group.
It served as a testomony to the immense starpower of one of many WNBA’s youngest faces.
“I love New York,” Reese, 23, stated Tuesday, about an hour and a half earlier than tip-off. “It’s probably my favorite city to play in. It’s close to home, so a lot of my family can come. This arena is legendary. Everybody wants to play here. It feels like bright lights.”
And though the Liberty smoked the Sky, 85-66, Reese largely met the second.
Reese scored a season-high 17 factors on 8-of-13 taking pictures with 11 rebounds and three assists in 31 minutes. Her 61.5% field-goal proportion marked a season finest.
Profiting from a Liberty lineup that was lacking 6-6 middle Jonquel Jones attributable to an ankle damage, Reese delivered a mixture of put-back lay-ups, driving finishes and her second 3-pointer of the season.
Reese scored seven factors and corralled six rebounds within the first quarter alone and completed along with her fourth double-double of the season.
It wasn’t an ideal efficiency, as Reese dedicated 5 turnovers and was referred to as for a flagrant foul after a mid-court collision with Leonie Fiebich.
However Tuesday served as a spotlight in what’s been a tricky begin to Reese’s sophomore season.
“I haven’t been playing well at all,” Reese stated. “I could sit here and mope around and point the finger, but it’s been me. I take accountability. I come in every day and try to be better than the last, and I know my teammates trust me and have my back.”
Reese entered Tuesday averaging a WNBA-best 12.3 rebounds per sport, however her 9.1 factors on 30.9% taking pictures had been down from her rookie numbers.
The 6-3 ahead struggled in her final sport in opposition to the Liberty, ending with a season-low two factors on 0-of-8 taking pictures in a 99-74 loss in Chicago on Could 22. The Liberty blocked Reese 4 occasions in that sport, together with two from Jones.
“I’m going to continue to say I trust my own work,” Reese stated earlier than Tuesday’s sport. “I put my head down and work every single day. I don’t give up on anything. I watch film. I critique myself the most. I know it’s gonna translate.”
The Baltimore-born Reese earned an incredible following at LSU, the place she was the point of interest of the Tigers group that beat Caitlin Clark-led Iowa within the 2023 nationwide championship sport.
Reese and Clark have been linked ever since. The Indiana Fever took the sharp-shooting Clark with the No. 1 decide within the 2024 WNBA Draft, and the Sky chosen Reese at No. 7.
“I think it’s been great for us with Angel,” Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello stated. “She competes so hard on the court. She’s one of the greatest rebounders I’ve seen. … She’s still a young player developing in our league, too. But the amount of fans that she’s brought from college, like Caitlin has, I think that’s great for our league.”
Not all the consideration has been constructive, nevertheless.
Final month, the WNBA investigated, however couldn’t confirm, an allegation of racist fan abuse directed at Reese throughout a sport in opposition to the Fever at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The on-court rivalry between Reese and Clark has been cited because the supply of social-media toxicity.
“I know my teammates have my back, my coaches have my back, and that’s all that really matters,” Reese stated. “I don’t have to prove anything to anybody besides myself and my teammates.”
Final season, Reese set a WNBA report with 15 consecutive double-doubles, the final of which got here at Barclays Heart in opposition to the Liberty.
She averaged 13.6 factors and 13.1 rebounds per sport in 2024-25, throughout which she was named an All-Star; was the runner-up to Clark for Rookie of the 12 months; and completed twelfth in MVP voting.
This season has include new challenges.
The Sky have a first-year head coach in Tyler Marsh.
Spacing stays a priority between Reese and 6-7 middle Kamilla Cardoso, whose talent units overlap.
Veteran level guard Courtney Vandersloot, who rejoined the Sky within the offseason after two seasons with the Liberty, tore the ACL in her proper knee on Saturday, delivering a blow to the event of Chicago’s younger gamers.
However whereas the Sky fell to 2-6 with Tuesday’s loss, Reese was “great,” Marsh stated.
“I think what we saw tonight is who Angel is,” Marsh stated. “She was maybe a little bit more aggressive in demanding her spots —and not letting it come to her, but initiating — so that was good to see. … I thought she competed all night at both ends, and she was a great teammate throughout the night.”
The followers at Barclays Heart loved her efficiency, too.
“I just love being here,” Reese stated earlier than the sport. “This environment is great. The fans, sometimes I feel like they’re here for Chicago more than New York, because they support us so much here.”
Initially Printed: June 10, 2025 at 10:10 PM EDT
