Toronto Tempo forward Isabelle Harrison was tossed from Sunday’s game after committing a hard foul against the Atlanta Dream’s Angel Reese.
Reese had established position in the paint nearly four minutes into the third quarter when she was passed the ball. Harrison reached over and tackled her to the floor. Reese’s teammates immediately jumped in to separate the two players.
The takedown occurred with around 6:05 left in the third quarter, while the Dream were leading 52-42. Officials reviewed the play and Harrison was assessed a Flagrant 2 foul for contact that was deemed “unnecessary and excessive” and ejected from the game.
Harrison, who was drafted in 2015, was the leading scorer for the Tempo with 17 points at the time she was tossed. Reese ended the game with 15 points and 17 rebounds in Atlanta’s 102-77 victory. It marks the ninth double-double of the season for the two-time All Star.
WNBA officials have been cracking down on physical play this season after complaints about the level of physicality last year.
Things appeared to get heated between the two former teammates, who crossed paths during Reese’s rookie season with the Chicago Sky, starting in the first half of Sunday’s game at the Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto. The players could be seen exchanging words throughout their match-up and, at one point during the second quarter, Harrison swatted at the ball being held by Reese after play had already been stopped.
After the game, Tempo coach Sandy Brondello said Harrison’s ejection was “unfortunate” because Harrison was “playing so well.” When asked about what she was hoping to see from her team in their next stretch of games, Brondello mentioned consistency and her players “not getting too high [or] too low.”
“I think sometimes the emotions get the best of us and takes away from how we want to play,” Brondella said.
Dream guard Allisha Gray, who led all scorers with 26 points, praised her teammate after the game.
“Angel’s a beast on the boards,” Gray said. “She does everything that we need to help us win and accomplish our goals for the game. So, I think Angel did really well tonight, keeping her composure and really battling on the boards.”
The Dream (9-4) is currently fourth in league standings, while the Tempo (7-7) sit in ninth place.
