Chicago Sky rookie sensation Angel Reese made WNBA history on Sunday when she recorded her 13th consecutive double-double, a new league record, in her team’s 84-71 loss to the Seattle Storm.
With 17 points and 14 rebounds in the contest, Reese surpassed the W’s previous record of 12 consecutive double-doubles, accomplished by all-time great Candace Parker in the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
“I’m just trying to be consistent for my teammates, doing whatever I can to help my team,” Reese said. “I feel like I didn’t do enough tonight, but just being able to be out there with my teammates and knowing I have a job to do every day, whether I’m a rookie or a vet.”
“It’s absolutely amazing to see,” first-year head coach Teresa Weatherspoon said of Reese’s accomplishment. “She may surprise herself, but she’s not surprising me. It’s something she can do because it’s something she works to be able to do. And it’s a will and a want. … It’s amazing to see it. You have to work hard to be able to do that.”
Reese also reached the 275-point, 225-rebound and 30-steal thresholds in just 20 games. Only Yolanda Griffith (19 in 1999) has recorded such numbers in fewer games.
Reese now has 14 double-doubles on the season, fifth-most for a rookie. Tina Charles’s double-double record for a first-year player is 22.
“It’s great for me, to be able to know where I am right now and obviously not be satisfied with where I am,” Reese said. “I have coaches and teammates around me who believe in me and trust me and I just trust the process of everything. I’m grateful. I’m blessed to be nominated with these amazing players And lucky. They’ve always been so supportive and inspiring to me. I’ve been able to see them break their records and be there with them in this moment. It’s really nice to be able to.”
Parker – who played two seasons for the Reese Sky and led them to the franchise’s only title in 2021 – was a legend the rookie has long admired and wants to model his game after. Reese said she also developed a relationship with Parker’s mother.
“To be nominated with her, I want to win and to be able to come to Chicago and represent her city and bring home a championship is important to me and I’m looking forward to it,” Reese said. Parker’s.
Reese hit 8 of 15 shots from the floor on Sunday; Although he struggled with his efficiency early this season, he has shot at least 50% from the floor in six of Chicago’s last 11 games.
“It’s a confidence level to do more than people think,” Weatherspoon said of Reese’s season improvement. “She’s able to trust herself, trust her training, shoot the ball when she’s open and believe she can make those shots because when you put in the work, There’s no reason not to trust your training.
“She’s gotten really good at finishing around the rim, getting our offensive rebounds and putbacks or just getting deployed in our offensive sets and finishing around the rim with power and finishing. So. It’s really great to see. He’s going to get better as we move forward.”
Reese — the No. 7 draft pick after a standout career at Maryland and LSU, where she won a national title in 2023 — joined Kaitlin Clark last week as the only freshmen to be named 2024 All-Stars. The pair, the frontrunners in the Rookie of the Year race, will be teammates in the WNBA and will face the U.S. Olympic team in the WNBA All-Star Game later this month.
“It’s a pleasure to watch,” teammate Marina Mabrey said of Reese. “She’s very consistent. She comes in every day and fights and fights and she’s super physical for a rookie, which is really hard to do. That’s usually one of the biggest turnarounds and she just jumped in there. And did all the dirty work, and now it’s all profitable for him and this is just the beginning, so I’m excited to see where it goes.”
With Sunday’s loss, the Sky dropped to eighth in the standings but remain in the playoff picture.
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