Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese resume WNBA’s fiercest rivalry TODAY: Fever host Sky for first time since Chennedy Carter’s body check on No. 1 draft pick… but will tensions boil over again?

Traditionally, a matinee game between two struggling WNBA teams is never considered must-see TV. But with wildly popular rookies Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese in action, Sunday’s Indiana Fever (4-10) game against the Chicago Sky (4-8) in Indianapolis is now a date.

Their last meeting reportedly drew 1.5 million viewers on June 1, when Clark’s Fever defeated Reese’s Sky 71-70. And that crowd figure could be dwarfed on Sunday thanks to the ongoing controversy over Sky guard Chennedy Carter’s controversial hip-check foul on Clark two weeks ago.

The unwarranted clash infuriated the former Iowa Hawkeyes star’s fans, who saw the incident as evidence of an anti-Clark bias within the league. Meanwhile, Clark’s critics objected to the performative fury of the media, many of whom spent the next few days criticizing Carter.

Clark didn’t appreciate the foul (“that’s just not a basketball game,” she said afterward), but she also doesn’t think Carter owes her an apology. She also would not address the opinions of experts, who have claimed that Clark is somehow being targeted because he is not black or gay.

On Thursday, Clark said she tries to avoid such conversations, but admitted it was “disappointing” to see her name used to promote racist and sexist beliefs.

Chennedy Carter (left) and Angel Reese (right) speak to the media after the controversial foul

“Everyone in our world deserves equal respect,” Clark said Thursday. “The women in our league deserve equal respect.

“People shouldn’t be using my name for those agendas. It’s disappointing. It’s not acceptable.’

As she always has, Clark has turned off the noise to focus on basketball – something that has become significantly more difficult at the professional level. In fairness, Reese’s rookie campaign during their first month in the WNBA compares favorably to her old college rival.

Entering Sunday, Reese was averaging 12.2 points per night while among the league leaders in both rebounds (10 per game) and steals (1.8 per game).

Clark’s rookie season was impressive in its own right. The former Iowa star entered Friday at 17th in scoring at 15.6 points per game and fourth in assists at 6.0 per night.

But Clark’s famed long-range shooting has suffered from the Fever, as she has made less than a third of her attempts from distance.

And her defensive performance was even more concerning.

Things may have been the worst on Monday when the Fever were outscored by 22 points with Clark on the court. Ultimately, coach Christie Sides was forced to withdraw Clark before slamming the Fever’s try in the 89-72 loss to the Connecticut Sun.

“You can’t make a coaching effort at this level,” Sides said of her team after the match. “I felt like we were just asking them to keep playing hard.”

Angel Reese (left) and Caitlin Clark (right) are seen before the Sky-Fever match on June 1

Clark and Reese have been rivals since Reese mocked Clark during the 2023 national championship

For many, it was difficult to reconcile the media attention and endorsement deals for Clark during an up-and-down rookie season.

And to Reese, who many portray as Clark’s protagonist villain, the WNBA owes its recent success to more than just her fellow rookie.

“I will take on the role of villain and I will continue to do that for my teammates,” said Reese, who has been targeted for everything from her appearance to her physical play. “Twenty years from now, I’ll look back and say, ‘The reason we watch women’s basketball isn’t just because of one person. It’s also because of me.” I want you all to realize that.’

Reese, a social media sensation known as “Bayou Barbie,” is certainly right about the WNBA’s increased popularity.

Attendance rose 17 percent from last season and more than half of this year’s WNBA games were sold out — a 156 percent increase from 2023. Meanwhile, merchandise sales on the league’s website are up 756 percent up, while subscriptions to the WNBA streaming service increased 335 percent. per cent.

But how much credit the “other” WNBA rookie deserves is an open debate.

Some, like conservative podcaster Jason Whitlock, want to give all the credit to Clark.

“Nobody listens to Angel Reese,” Whitlock told his podcast audience earlier this month. “It just doesn’t happen.”

But proving Whitlock’s point is not so simple.

Yes, Iowa’s Elite Eight win over LSU in April and the Hawkeyes’ 2023 NCAA championship loss to the Tigers are among the most-watched games in women’s basketball history.

But both Clark and Reese played in those tournament matches, making such a comparison difficult, if not impossible. And besides, it’s hard to say whether Clark is solely responsible for the record ratings the WNBA generated during April’s draft, when Reese went seventh overall to the Sky.

Sunday’s game won’t do much to settle this debate, but it could help move the conversation away from controversy and back to basketball.

And with Clark riding a two-game winning streak over Reese as the Fever and Sky try to claw their way into the WNBA playoff picture, nothing could be more important than that.