Angel Reese, forward for the Atlanta Dream, was the target of a flagrant foul during her team's 104-69 victory over the Connecticut Sun on Thursday night. The incident occurred in the second quarter when Sun star Aaliyah Edwards fouled Reese from behind as she attempted a layup. Edwards' hand made contact with Reese's face and head area.
Following a review, officials upgraded the foul to a Flagrant 1. Reese, a former LSU player, reacted with visible frustration, turning to shout at Edwards and later gesturing to indicate the nature of the contact.
This foul on Reese is the latest in a series of hard fouls that have recently drawn scrutiny in the WNBA. Last Saturday, DiJonai Carrington of the Connecticut Sun committed a Flagrant 2 foul on Indiana Fever's Caitlin Clark, hitting her in the head and neck during a play. Carrington was ejected from that game.
Carrington later addressed the incident on social media, initially posting "WHITE PRIVILEGE @indianafever" on Threads, a comment she later clarified. She stated that she "never once claimed that the assessment of the foul was white privilege" and would not use the term as a "rhetorical weapon" without proper evidence. She described the foul as "unfortunate" and "never intentional," adding that she plays aggressively and "never intending to hurt anybody."
Carrington was involved in further controversial plays on Wednesday night. She appeared to poke Cecilia Zandalasini in the eye while attempting to block a pass, a move reminiscent of an earlier incident involving Caitlin Clark. Shortly after, Carrington lowered her arm into the face of Tiffany Hayes as Hayes drove to the basket, an action Reyes said was not near the ball and caught Hayes directly in the face.
In Thursday's game, Reese also had a shot blocked by Brittney Griner in the first quarter, and Griner went on to block two more of Reese's shots throughout the game. Reese finished the game with eight points, 15 rebounds, four blocks, and three steals.