The NCAA Women’s basketball tournament has come to an end and pure chaos would be an understatement. The Angel Reese’s LSU Tigers managed to shut out the Iowa Hawkeyes in the championship game at the American Airlines Center recently. They won the game 102-85.
The basketball world expected a good battle from both teams but that was not the case, unfortunately, for neutral supporters.
It was a given that Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark would be the stars of the show, and they didn’t disappoint. Clark was the standout player for the Hawkeyes, putting up 30 points, 8 assists, and 2 rebounds. For the Tigers, Jasmine Carson and Alexis Morris were effective in the scoring department. Reese didn’t have her best game but managed to accumulate 10 rebounds and 15 points.
ANGEL REESE TO CAITLIN CLARK 😳 pic.twitter.com/2NY0CEzwJ3
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 2, 2023
Fans will be surprised to know that the Tigers’ championship win wasn’t what made waves on social media. It was Angel’s gesture toward Caitlin, which earned her plenty of backlash from basketball fans.
Was Angel Reese wrong for her gesture toward Caitlin Clark?
For some context, Reese did John Cena’s infamous “You can’t see me” celebration, and she made sure everyone knew that she was targeting Caitlin. Along with this, Angel pointed to her ring finger as well, indicating that she has won a championship ring.
What a fucking idiot https://t.co/C8dW0tukfP
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) April 2, 2023
This earned plenty of hate toward her, as fans branded her as “Classless” and “Unsportsmanlike.” Keith Olbermann, a famous basketball commentator, tweeted, “What f**king idiot,” taking a dig at Angel.
shut your dumb ass up leave angel reese alone.
— SHAQ (@SHAQ) April 3, 2023
Former LSU superstar and NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal then replied to Olbermann and slammed his comments. He said, “Shut your dumb a** up leave Angel Reese alone.” Olbermann then released a statement and admitted that he was in the wrong in this situation. He claimed that he was not aware of the gesture made by Caitlin in the previous game, against the Louisville Cardinals.
I apologize for being uninformed last night about the back story on this. I don’t follow hoops, college or pro, men or women. I had no idea about Clark. Both were wrong.
This is what I said in today’s Countdown podcast. 2nd segment, about 24 minutes in: https://t.co/JDYjXBrkWy pic.twitter.com/0E1HxZyv2I
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) April 3, 2023
Caitlin has admitted that she did the celebration toward one of Iowa’s coaches but it certainly looks like Angel and the Tigers took it as a jibe at them. Shaquille O’Neal joins LeBron James, who defended Angel’s gesture as well.