The Fever defeated the Sky 71-70 on June 1

Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese

Angel Reese continued her rivalry with Caitlin Clark by insisting the Chicago Sky beat themselves when they fell to the Indiana Fever earlier in the WNBA season as she prepares for their rematch on Sunday, June 16.

The forward for the Sky was on the court during the 71-70 loss that saw Chennedy Carter attract a storm of controversy by flooring Clark in an off-the-ball incident in the third quarter, leading to criticism from a host of basketball personalities.

So caught up in that, and overlooked as a result, was the fact that the Fever beat the side one place above them in the Eastern Conference. Now with the Sky in a bad run of form, Reese has attempted to rally her own teammates ahead of the game.

“Obviously Sunday, learning from our mistakes from the first game,” Reese told CBS of the June 1 with the Fever. “I think we beat ourselves that first game so just going back and looking at film again and watching the things that we need to fix.

“I think it’s going to be a great game again. A lot of eyes are going to be on that game for sure, and just great for women’s basketball. Of course, I know we’re going to continue to break records and viewership so that’s what’s most important.”

Reese fell below her own standards in the previous match with the Fever by posting eight points and 13 rebounds, underperforming in the former, through 30 minutes of the contest in the game that gained 1.53 million viewers.

The Sky also only managed to shoot for 16.7% from the field and lagged behind the Fever on assists too, showing how a marginal performance loss can have big consequences.

Of course, it didn’t take long for the questions to turn back to the physicality against Clark after Carter’s action in their June 1 match and Reese insisted physical contact is a part of the game and part of the hunger to win.

“I’m sure…I mean we’re all super competitive out there,” Reese added. “I mean all of us want to do whatever it takes to win.

“I mean we have so much great talent on both teams, so just being able to go out there and have so much fun and enjoy the game as much as we can.

“I’m super excited for my teammates. I’m excited for the other team as well and again like to continue to grow women’s basketball is what’s most important.”

When do the Sky play the Fever?

This time, the Chicago Sky will travel to the Gainbridge FieldHouse in Indianapolis to take on the Fever on Sunday, June 16 with the game scheduled to begin at 12:00 ET/09:00 PT.