NEIlliniFan
- No longer in New England
Generally speaking, absolutely
Women's Final Four
Worst officiated game I remember. Makes all Illini games seem great by comparison. Not one sided, just terrible both ways.
Illini in Indiana
- Indiana
LSU was the better team, but it would have been nice to have decent officiating. Ruined an opportunity to promote the game.
Yes. This was a golden opportunity for the women's game and the refs said nope.... we'll only ref in 1/4 full stadiums. I'm guessing that the game was potentially too big for the refs that they felt the need to intervene? The NCAA is not going to be thrilled with the feedback. Most people tuned out at half and that's too bad.
If I am affiliated with the Iowa NIL people I am scouring America for competent transfers to play with Clark next year. Mulkey got 9 transfers and changed her entire team. Iowa has a pretty good sell with Clark to do the same in Iowa City.
Can’t say I’m too upset about an Iowa team getting screwed by the refs 
(if you can say that in a 17 point loss)
Honestly, Iowa beating South Carolina and losing to LSU was the ideal outcome. I don’t like super teams and I don’t like Iowa.
(if you can say that in a 17 point loss)Honestly, Iowa beating South Carolina and losing to LSU was the ideal outcome. I don’t like super teams and I don’t like Iowa.
Or if I am say UCONN Clark with Paige would be unstoppable.
I don’t think she leave Iowa but she could make tons elsewhere
A national championship game warped beyond recognition by overactive officiating? Where in the world have I seen that before?
(Though to be fair, I think LSU would have won regardless today).
Goillinikobd
- Southeastern US
Probably right, but I would have liked to see the players decide that.
By the way, did you see the pregame where two of the panel demonstrated how CC slaps off the defenders hand to get past her.
i don’t recall seeing it called as a foul in previous tourney games but the refs whistled her for it in the first quarter.
Did someone cue them in before the game.
Really odd coincidence
Goillinikobd
- Southeastern US
I saw an ESPN report that CC makes over a million in NIL. She just signed with a shoe company. Saw another report that it was 100k before the shoe deal.
Hard to walk away from that. She is the biggest fish in her pond.
From what I understand Clark is making more than one million at Iowa right now. Nike just signed her up.
She could have two more seasons in IC because of the extra Covid year. I'm not sure the WNBA could match her NIL haul there.
Kim Mulkey certainly would not be on my list of favorite sports people, but she's a phenomenal coach and competitor. That is a signature CC move and I doubt the ESPN follks came up with that out of thin air. Surely, she put a bug in the refs' ear as well, which is what a good coach does.
Goillinikobd
- Southeastern US
I thought I saw that she is one year away from eligibility for the WNBA draft. Is that right?
Just googled and it said the HIGHEST paid player in WNBA makes less than 250k in salary. Yikes
Goillinikobd
- Southeastern US
I suspect KM did, but if they haven’t called it all year, you can’t start now. At least give the All American, number 1 tv draw the courtesy of a warning before the game.
The officials surrendered their authority. Did their boss tell them to ignore KM and not "ruin" the championship game with a T on her? If so, that directive backfired. Just about everyone not a fan of LSU agreed that KM bullied her way through the game and intimidated the officials. Perception is reality.
LSU deserves the win, but the officials had a poor game.
LSU deserves the win, but the officials had a poor game.
The Women's game should be much easier to officiate - not as fast and not as much hand to hand combat in the paint
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Angel Reese defends gesture toward Caitlin Clark after LSU title win, calls out double standard
The gesture has sparked much debate, especially on social media. Some have criticized Reese, while others have defended her actions.
SU star Angel Reese defended the gesture she aimed at Iowa Hawkeyes' Caitlin Clark near the end of the Tigers' first NCAA women's basketball national championship victory on Sunday, saying "I don't take disrespect lightly."
AISHA SULTAN
Sultan: Backlash to Angel Reese raises question: Which athletes get called 'classless'?
Reese could be seen approaching Clark before moving her open hand in front of her face — popularized by WWE star John Cena to mean "you can't see me" — before pointing to her ring finger in a gesture some interpreted as a reference to the place her newly-acquired championship ring might sit.
Clark made a similar gesture to another player earlier in the tournament.
The gesture has sparked much debate, especially on social media. Some have criticized Reese, while others have defended her actions, highlighting how there was no public outrage in response to Clark's gesture earlier in the tournament.
Sports journalist Jose de Jesus Ortiz called Reese's actions "classless," while former ESPN host Keith Olbermann called Reese an "idiot" for the gesture.
In the press conference after the victory, Reese referenced the difference in reaction she received as a result of her gesture as compared to the one Clark received.
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I thought it was uncalled for and showed a distinct lack of class and respect for an opponent.....She was doing it way before the game ended and shows a character issue displayed in the NCAA women's BB championship that the sport doesn't need......
LSU played great , but was benefitted by some questionable officiating .........seems like the better the athletes are the worse the reffing is ....................oh well , I hope next year's women's Fighting Illini team is in a position to show the nation what a class act we can be as we win a natty.........With the returning players , plus HS recruits , plus whatever Coach Green can pick up from the portal that we can have a long long run in the dance......JMHO
So in the category of "things I didn't expect to be doing in April 2023", I actually found myself reading Iowa message boards after the game Sunday as I was wanted to get their reaction after becoming completely hooked on Caitlin Clark and this Iowa team (literally the only Iowa team I've ever rooted for in my lifetime)....and those posters were making the distinction that Clark was responding to someone on Louisville who did it earlier in the game, and what I thought was the better point was that Clark was basically walking off the court when she did it and not in the face of any Louisville player while Reese was going out of her way to walk over to Clark on multiple times to do it. I mean, my thought is to Reese, you just won the national championship, go celebrate with your teammates, it is classless to act like she did in the last seconds to instead seek out your opponent and do that....Clark did nothing like that at the end of the Louisville game.Angel Reese defends gesture toward Caitlin Clark after LSU title win, calls out double standard
The gesture has sparked much debate, especially on social media. Some have criticized Reese, while others have defended her actions.www.stltoday.com
SU star Angel Reese defended the gesture she aimed at Iowa Hawkeyes' Caitlin Clark near the end of the Tigers' first NCAA women's basketball national championship victory on Sunday, saying "I don't take disrespect lightly."
AISHA SULTAN
Sultan: Backlash to Angel Reese raises question: Which athletes get called 'classless'?
Reese could be seen approaching Clark before moving her open hand in front of her face — popularized by WWE star John Cena to mean "you can't see me" — before pointing to her ring finger in a gesture some interpreted as a reference to the place her newly-acquired championship ring might sit.
Clark made a similar gesture to another player earlier in the tournament.
The gesture has sparked much debate, especially on social media. Some have criticized Reese, while others have defended her actions, highlighting how there was no public outrage in response to Clark's gesture earlier in the tournament.
Sports journalist Jose de Jesus Ortiz called Reese's actions "classless," while former ESPN host Keith Olbermann called Reese an "idiot" for the gesture.
In the press conference after the victory, Reese referenced the difference in reaction she received as a result of her gesture as compared to the one Clark received.
-----------------------------------------------------
I thought it was uncalled for and showed a distinct lack of class and respect for an opponent.....She was doing it way before the game ended and shows a character issue displayed in the NCAA women's BB championship that the sport doesn't need......
LSU played great , but was benefitted by some questionable officiating .........seems like the better the athletes are the worse the reffing is ....................oh well , I hope next year's women's Fighting Illini team is in a position to show the nation what a class act we can be as we win a natty.........With the returning players , plus HS recruits , plus whatever Coach Green can pick up from the portal that we can have a long long run in the dance......JMHO
And on another point, after spending that time on the Iowa site, got to say thank you Dan and all the posters here for such a great board. You wouldn't believe how backwards and racist some of the Iowa posts were (upset there were 3 black officials for the national title game, some poor comments about the LSU kids)...stuff you don't see here at Loyalty, and I know how rough our game threads can get, it was nothing close to as bad as the Iowa fans. I guess I'm naive, I couldn't believe I was still reading some of that stuff in 2023.
And one last thought as I'm sure nobody wants to read so much about Iowa here, but I really think they need to schedule LSU and probably South Carolina in non-conference next year. Those games could match or beat UConn-Tennessee from the heyday of their rivalry back in the day.
"the better point was that Clark was basically walking off the court when she did it and not in the face of any Louisville player while Reese was going out of her way to walk over to Clark on multiple times to do it" if Reese had done it on the sideline it would have been touche. Reese was taunting right in Clark's face (but no T's) - even at end of game when LSU was shooting FTs. For all the talk of some men and women's teams being "more talented" - then why do they need to play thug ball to win. And somehow refs allow it. LSU doesn't go on their 1H run if Iowa doesn't have 3 starters in foul trouble on bench, or as it should have been flipped - LSU should have had 5 starters in foul trouble in first quarter and Mulchey should have been T'd early.
I prefer not to see the “taunting” gestures at all in men or women’s bball, but then again I’m old school. But Reese following Clark around trying to get in front of her so she could do it to her face was way over the top. I’m not willing to label her classless, but certainly an unfortunate display.
Clark definitely has some “punk” in her, so not surprised to see players on other teams wanting to show her up. I thought her dismissive wave of her hand at a perimeter player during the SC game when she was packing it into the paint basically “saying” I’m not even going to guard you was pretty bush.
Clark definitely has some “punk” in her, so not surprised to see players on other teams wanting to show her up. I thought her dismissive wave of her hand at a perimeter player during the SC game when she was packing it into the paint basically “saying” I’m not even going to guard you was pretty bush.
NEIlliniFan
- No longer in New England
So did I. My jaw dropped open.
NIL I was thinking that some enterprising Hawkeye fans might have started passing the hats at the gathering that welcomed the Hawkeyes back home. Great way to start the NIL fund to acquire top bigs. Now that the rabid Iowa fans have been to the FF you can bet they will do all in their power to return while they still have #22.
OFFICIATING Bluder spoke in her post game presser of how the women's game has progressed by leaps and bounds from her time as a player in the 80's and I am thinking of my time in the 70's. Evidently the officials were still thinking they were working back in those days. As I texted my various fellow Illini around the country we were all saying the same thing. LET THEM PLAY! So disappointed in how they impacted the game.
THE KERFUFFLE So after the letdown of a hard final game to watch due to way too many whistles, we have the incident. I wish it had happened in the handshake line and not on the court. I figure if CC is putting that attitude on display in her game she is no doubt not going to be surprised when it comes back around to her. Call me old school, but I could do without any of it by any player. CC never seems to think she has committed a foul and all I have to do is think back to our victory on New Years Day. So much drama when she was whistled for a foul. For me it is a bit of a blemish on her amazing talents. In closing it, would have been cool to say we beat the National Champions but glad the B1G Ten was represented in the final game.
Hoping for exciting news from the portal search. GO ILLINI
OFFICIATING Bluder spoke in her post game presser of how the women's game has progressed by leaps and bounds from her time as a player in the 80's and I am thinking of my time in the 70's. Evidently the officials were still thinking they were working back in those days. As I texted my various fellow Illini around the country we were all saying the same thing. LET THEM PLAY! So disappointed in how they impacted the game.
THE KERFUFFLE So after the letdown of a hard final game to watch due to way too many whistles, we have the incident. I wish it had happened in the handshake line and not on the court. I figure if CC is putting that attitude on display in her game she is no doubt not going to be surprised when it comes back around to her. Call me old school, but I could do without any of it by any player. CC never seems to think she has committed a foul and all I have to do is think back to our victory on New Years Day. So much drama when she was whistled for a foul. For me it is a bit of a blemish on her amazing talents. In closing it, would have been cool to say we beat the National Champions but glad the B1G Ten was represented in the final game.
Hoping for exciting news from the portal search. GO ILLINI