Angel Reese didn’t play on Friday night as the LSU Tigers were knocked out of the NCAA Tournament by the Iowa Hawkeyes on Monday, but she was still catching shade during ESPN’s alternate broadcast of the Final Four clash between Iowa and UConn.
The Hawkeyes are through to the championship game following a close 71-69 win over the Huskies. And Caitlin Clarke will have the opportunity to leave the college game on a high note after failing at the final hurdle last year.
During said broadcast, ESPN showed a clip of Angel Reese waving goodbye to a Middle Tennessee player in the Round of 32.
Taurasi seemed to mock her by saying, “Wave bye-bye to your own career.”
Check it out in the video below:
“Wave bye bye to your own career.”
Diana Taurasi with the not so subtle diss to Angel Reese on Reese Bye-Bye to Middle Tennessee’s Anastasiia Boldyreva. #WomensFinalFour – @sluggahjells pic.twitter.com/AJW89bgN7q
— The Whole Delivery (@TWDTV1) April 6, 2024
We can’t be sure whether Diana was referring to Angel’s college career or her basketball career, but it was a petty shot.
“Damn why they hating on their potential cash cows,” one fan wrote. “I’ll never understand it.“
“Angel probably made as much of NIL as they have their whole careers, of course they’re hating,” another commented.
You can check out some additional reactions below:
Yeah that’s how you show people you support young women in sports:
Hate on the young women for no reason 😒. Old heads in sports love hating on the next generation and it’s so weird.
— Shaun Bellamy (@KingSB93) April 6, 2024
Because she is more relevant than any wnba player ever while still in college she’s bitter
— JAY Makhachev (@jayslzvsthwrld) April 6, 2024
Angel Reese was a better college basketball than Diana Taurasi pic.twitter.com/1fybOFgVhv
— Rio (@RioDa0g) April 6, 2024
Angel Reese’s Wave Came Back To Haunt Her
Reese’s wave during said game returned to haunt her during Monday’s Elite Eight showdown. The Tigers star fouled out of the game late in the fourth quarter after attempting a lay-up, with her move deemed a charge, and was handed her marching orders.
Video footage shows Iowa’s Gabbie Marshall waving goodbye to her.
Reese is now headed to the WNBA, having announced her decision to go pro this past Wednesday.
“I’ve done everything I wanted to in college,” she told Vogue Magazine. “I’ve won a national championship, I’ve gotten [SEC] Player of the Year, I’ve been an All-American. My ultimate goal is to be a pro—and to be one of the greatest basketball players to play, ever. I feel like I’m ready.“
Her career’s only just getting started, so not sure what Diana Taurasi was on about there. In any case, they should be meeting in the pros soon.
