The LSU women’s basketball team lived out a dream last month when they won the national championship over Iowa.
However, with the championship came much controversy with Angel Reese’s celebrations towards the end of the final game.
Reese, now infamously, signaled that she was getting a championship ring and, like Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, pulled off John Cena’s “You Can’t See Me” celebration.
Reese was called a “classless piece of s–t” by Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy, among other negative connotations in the midst of her greatest athletic achievement and one of the greatest milestones of her entire life.
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LSU’s Angel Reese reacts in front of Iowa’s Caitlin Clark during the second half of the NCAA Women’s Final Four championship basketball game Sunday, April 2, 2023, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
“It was frustrating,” Reese said on “The Jennifer Hudson Show” earlier this week.
However, despite the backlash she got, there has been an extremely bright light at the end of the tunnel.
“To see how we’ve grown women’s basketball with a couple weeks, 9.9 million people watched the game. That’s more than the men’s. I know one day we’re going down in the history books, so it’s bigger than me,” she continued.
However, Reese did admit that it would have been nice for more people to celebrate the Tigers’ accomplishments rather than bask in the controversy surrounding her and Clark.
“I’m so happy that we won the championship. I wish it was more talked about. As much as they talked about the Caitlin situation, I wanted to talk about the national championship, because we worked just as hard. We put a lot of sweat and tears into that championship and people don’t realize that. It’s not easy to win a championship. So to be able to do that, it’s the best of both worlds. I’m happy the situation happened, but at the same time I’m a national champion, and I’m getting a ring.”
Angel Reese, #10 of the LSU Lady Tigers, reacts towards Caitlin Clark, #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes, during the fourth quarter during the 2023 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament championship game at American Airlines Center on April 2, 2023, in Dallas, Texas. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
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Reese’s teammates echoed her sentiments.
“It just grew the game, and I was happy to be a part of it and be a national champion at the same time. You can’t complain about too much after that,” added Flau’Jae Johnson.
Reese later added that she and Clark have no “beef” and that “people don’t realize” that they “are cool,” saying that any feud between them had been blown way out of proportion.
Clark herself said that Reese should have received no criticism.
“You should be able to play with that emotion. That’s what makes it so fun,” Clark said last month. “Nobody wants to tune in and not see people be competitive and passioned about what they’re doing across any sport. That’s how it should be…
Angel Reese, #10 of the LSU Lady Tigers, smiles in celebration after defeating the Iowa Hawkeyes during the 2023 NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament National Championship at American Airlines Center on April 2, 2023, in Dallas, Texas. (C. Morgan Engel/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
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“I don’t think Angel should be criticized at all,” Clark also said. “No matter what way it goes, she should never be criticized for what she did. I’m just one that competes, and she competed. It was a super, super fun game. I think that’s what’s going to bring more people to our game.”
