Even during her first year in the league, Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese has already left her mark earlier than expected. Just recently, the young forward made history again by accomplishing a feat no one has done before in a WNBA All-Star Game.
Team WNBA and the USA Basketball Women’s National Team recently met with the former emerging victorious with a 117-109 win. Dallas Wings star Arike Ogunbowale was named the game’s MVP, scoring a record-breaking 34 points in the second half to lead her team’s comeback. Rookie standouts Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese also made significant contributions for their squad.
The game was a closely contested affair, with 11 ties and 16 lead changes keeping the sell-out crowd of 16,000 on the edge of their seats. Team WNBA’s superior shooting, with a 44.2% field goal percentage compared to the USA’s 39.9%, along with their dominance on the boards, proved to be the difference.
For Team USA, MVPs Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson led the way with 31 and 22 points, respectively, while Diana Taurasi and Brittany Griner also made valuable contributions. However, the team’s 14 turnovers and their opponent’s bench outscoring the USA’s reserves 54-34 ultimately proved costly.
The loss serves as a wake-up call for the USA team as they prepare for the Paris Olympics, with coach Cheryl Reeve acknowledging the need to quickly integrate the squad and improve their collective defensive efforts.
Chicago Sky Rookie Angel Reese Makes WNBA History in First All-Star Game
Apart from Ogunbowale dominating the game, Reese also made heads turn during her first All-Star appearance. In a post by ESPN on their official X account, the Chicago Sky rookie accomplished something never been done before in league history.
Angel Reese made HISTORY in her AT&T WNBA All-Star Game debut 👏 pic.twitter.com/QWoILh3ORk
— ESPN (@espn) July 21, 2024
Just recently, Reese broke Candace Parker’s old record of having the most consecutive double-doubles as a rookie. The Chicago star achieved 15 double-doubles with averages of 15.3 points and 13.2 rebounds during that period.
There’s no denying how special Reese is, especially after accomplishing so much in her first year in the league. If she keeps this up, there’s going to be a lot of great things waiting for her in the future.
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