LSU basketball star Angel Reese is defending her taunting of Iowa’s Caitlin Clark during the NCAA title game on Sunday, and called out the hypocrites who criticized her for doing the same taunt Clark had done in games prior.
The Tigers forward received widespread backlash for using WWE superstar John Cena’s famous “You Can’t See Me” gesture during LSU’s 103-85 blowout victory at the American Airlines Center.
Black LSU Star Slams Hypocrites Condemning Her Use Of Taunt Initially Done By White Iowa Player
Iowa’s Clark had used the same hand gesture to taunt players in both the Elite Eight and Final Four.
Caitlin Clark ( @CaitlinClark22 ) just did a "You can't see me" to Hailey Van Lith ( @haileyvanlith )???#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/avwPCpZ786
— Antonio Garcia (@Iruk_WomenSport) March 27, 2023
But while Clark was praised for the act, Reese was criticized for poor sportsmanship. She went on to say that critics have characterized her as “too good… too ghetto” for the taunt, “but when other people do it, ya’ll don’t say nothing.”
“All year, I was critiqued about who I was,” Reese said during her post-game interview. “The narrative — I don’t fit the narrative. I don’t fit into the box that y’all want me to be in. ‘I’m too hood. I’m too ghetto.’ Y’all told me that all year. But, when other people do it, y’all don’t say nothing.”
"I don’t fit in the box that y’all want me to be in. I'm too hood, I'm too ghetto, y'all told me that all year. When other people do it, y'all don't say nothing. This was for the people that look like me." – Angel Reese ❤️👑
— WSLAM (@wslam) April 3, 2023
Reese Calls Sunday’s NCAA Title Win A Victory For “The Girls That Look Like Me”
Reese – who transferred from Maryland to LSU last May – added that Sunday’s win was for “the girls that look like me,” telling them to be “unapologetically you.”
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“And, that’s what I did it for tonight. It was bigger than me tonight. Twitter is gonna go on a rage every time. And, I’m happy. I feel like I’ve helped grow women’s basketball this year.”
ANGEL REESE TO CAITLIN CLARK 😳 pic.twitter.com/2NY0CEzwJ3
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 2, 2023
LeBron James, Shaq Amongst Reese’s Supporters After LSU Women Basketball’s First NCAA Title
Reese did have her supporters, though, including the likes of LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal, who defended Reese while going at Keith Olbermann, who had called her a “f***ing idiot.”
“Shut your dumb a** up leave angel reese alone.”
shut your dumb ass up leave angel reese alone.
— SHAQ (@SHAQ) April 3, 2023
LeBron also shared Ryan Clark’s message on Twitter, saying:
“If you praised Caitlin Clark as competitive, fiery, and passionate for doing the ‘You can’t see me’ celebration and are criticizing Angel Reese for the same we already know!!”
