reese

The Caitlin Clark–Angel Reese connection has been strong during the women’s FIBA World Cup.

The college rivals turned teammates on the U.S. national team showed off their growing chemistry in Team USA’s blowout victory against Hungary on Thursday in Berlin. The Americans knocked out their quarterfinal opponents 108-56, notching the team’s 34th consecutive win in World Cup play since 2006.

“We’ve played against each other so many times, so I’m sure we know each other’s game like the back of each other’s hand,” Reese said when asked after the game about playing with Clark. “Just easily dishing it off to her. She dishes it off to me. She knows my spots. I got one to her today, maybe two. So it’s fun. We just continue to build chemistry because we know we’re gonna be USA teammates for a while.”

The strength of Clark and Reese’s two-person game was on full display Thursday. Clark assisted on six of Reese’s nine points, and Reese returned the favor during the third quarter. After securing a steal, she hit Clark for an easy transition layup.

Reese ended the game with nine points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals. Clark finished just shy of a double-double with 10 points, nine assists, three rebounds and two steals.

Clark also has complimented Reese as a competitor and teammate during the tournament.

“We’re both fiery, fiery competitors and we want to win and it’s one of the things I really admire about her game,” Clark told the Associated Press in an interview published Wednesday. “She’s competitive and she has a tremendous motor; like, she has one of the best motors in the league. She works just as hard as anybody on the court. So, it’s been fun to to be able to play with her.”

Clark, who set records at Iowa, and Reese, who won an NCAA championship at Louisiana State, have been household names since their college matchups. Thanks to their intensely loyal — and often vocal — fan bases, that rivalry has been carried into their WNBA careers, where every matchup and interaction invites heightened scrutiny, especially online.

Clark told the AP that many of these stories about her and Reese’s relationship are “false takes.”

“No matter what, there’s always going to be people that create those narratives and say whatever they want to say,” Clark said. “There’s definitely no stopping that and they’re always going to be there.”

Reese and Clark are among Team USA’s young core, dubbed the “young and turnt” crew by teammate Paige Bueckers during training camp in December. The World Cup marks the first major international competition for six of those players: Bueckers, Clark, Reese, Aliyah Boston, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen.

Team USA is set to play Spain in the semifinals on Saturday.

Angel Reese has broken another WNBA record with her 29th double-double of the season.

The Atlanta Dream forward had 15 points and 11 rebounds in the team’s 89-81 victory against the Minnesota Lynx on Sunday, surpassing the previous mark for most double-doubles in a single season set by Alyssa Thomas in 2023. (Thomas had set that record while playing for the Connecticut Sun during a 40-game regular season.)

The three-time All Star has already broken multiple rebounding records this season. During the Dream’s 78-71 victory over the Sparks on Aug. 24, Reese grabbed 26 boards, setting a new record for total rebounds in a single game. Chamique Holdsclaw previously held the record with 24 rebounds, which she had set on May 23, 2003, while playing for the Washington Mystics.

Reese also set the records for most rebounds in a single season during that match-up. She now has 485 rebounds on the season, with four regular-season games remaining. Reigning WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson held the previous record of 451 total rebounds, which she had set during the 38-game regular season in 2024. Reese surpassed Wilson’s mark in 37 games.

“I’m just in awe watching her rebound,” teammate Allisha Gray said after Reese’s record-setting performance in L.A. “That’s a talent.”

The third-year player — also known to fans as ATL Barbie — heads into the FIBA World Cup break averaging 16.1 points and 12.4 rebounds this season. Reese has led the league in rebounds in each of her first two seasons and is on track to do so again.

Reese and Dream teammate Rhyne Howard will be among the players representing the U.S. at the 2026 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Berlin, Germany. The tournament kicks off Sept. 4 and is scheduled to conclude Sept. 13.

On Monday, USA Basketball announced that Wilson and Kelsey Plum, who had previously been announced as members of the team, will miss the World Cup for heath reasons. The pair will be replaced by All Star Washington Mystics duo Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen.

The announcement did not include further details about why Wilson and Plum will be missing the World Cup, but Plum has been dealing with a lower leg injury for most of the WNBA season.

“I did everything I could to be back on the court, but just ran out of time,” the Phoenix Mercury guard said in a statement posted to her Instagram story on Monday. “After careful consideration and conversations with my family, team doctors, coaching staff, and front office, the decision has been made to shut it down through [the] remainder of the season and focus on getting my body back to 100% … This is not an easy decision as I love to compete, but I know it’s the right one for the long term.”

Plum was a key piece to Team USA’s victory over France in the gold medal game at the Paris Olympics in 2024.

Four-time MVP Wilson, meanwhile, has been having another MVP-calibur season with the Las Vegas Aces. She was recently listed as questionable due to a back injury ahead of a game against the Toronto Tempo, but started both games against the expansion team last week. Wilson was named most outstanding player of the 2024 Paris Games and the 2022 World Cup.

The WNBA will resume play on Sept. 17.

Angel Reese broke the WNBA single-game rebounding record with 26 while also breaking the league’s season record for rebounds as the Atlanta Dream beat the Sparks 78-71 on Monday night.

Reese surpassed Chamique Holdsclaw’s record of 24 rebounds, set on May 23, 2003 for Washington.

The Dream star has 458 rebounds this season, seven more than A’ja Wilson’s mark set in 2024. Atlanta still has six games remaining in the regular season.

“I’m just in awe watching her rebound,” teammate Allisha Gray said. “That’s a talent.”

Reese finished with 11 points. She secured her WNBA-leading 27th double-double of the season on a basket with 13.9 seconds left in the game.

The Dream have won four straight games — all on the road — and have beaten the Sparks nine straight times.

Gray led Atlanta (25-13) with 20 points. Rhyne Howard added 18 points to eclipse 3,000 for her career. Gray set an Atlanta record for field goals in a season with 247.

Nneka Ogwumike had 27 points and 16 rebounds for the Sparks (13-25). Dearica Hamby and Cameron Brink each scored 15 points.

Atlanta trailed 37-36 at halftime before starting the third quarter on a 9-2 run. The Dream also began the fourth on a 9-2 run to make it 71-57 with 6:57 left.

Up next for the Sparks: host Washington on Friday.