New York Liberty star and FIBA World Cup MVP Breanna Stewart picked up a rare technical foul late in her team's disappointing 95-84 home loss to the Atlanta Dream. With New York trailing 88-80 and two minutes remaining in the contest, Stewart drove and attempted a mid-range jump shot. However, with Angel Reese on defense, she seemingly slapped the ball out of Stewart's hands.
However, a commentator suggested, "no call." Soon after that instance, there were several calls, as Stewart quickly fouled Reese and then began screaming at the nearby referee. Stewart's yelling ultimately resulted in a technical foul from the official, adding to the Liberty's issues. Along with getting the tech, Stewart apparently called out Reese for what happened, with a surprising remark aimed at her opponent and former FIBA World Cup teammate on Team USA.
More news: Caitlin Clark Gets Brutally Honest About Fever’s Performance in Loss to Mystics "That absolutely was [because of] the no call. She slapped [expletive] out of my hand," Stewart said about her first technical foul in a WNBA game since 2017. "Angel should pay my fine," Stewart reportedly told reporter Alexa Philippou about the fine that the WNBA issues players for technical fouls.
Reese is one of this season's leaders in technical fouls, along with several other Team USA teammates: the Indiana Fever's Caitlin Clark and the Phoenix Mercury's Kahleah Copper. All three players have seven technicals, with one more technical foul resulting in an automatic one-game suspension. The good news is there are just a few games left on each of their respective teams' regular-season schedules.
Meanwhile, Stewart typically keeps her composure on the court, so that was a rare occurrence for the Liberty star, on what was also a big night in her WNBA career. Aside from the technical foul drama, she scored her 6,812th point to pass retired player Cappie Pondexter for eighth in all-time points scored for the WNBA. Stewart finished the game with 28 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, and a steal, along with four turnovers and three personal fouls.
Unfortunately, the loss dropped her team to 26-17, as they have one game remaining, a rematch with the Dream on Wednesday night, before the WNBA Playoffs begin. More news: Olivia Miles Breaks Caitlin Clark Record to Make History in Lynx Playoff Push For more about the New York Liberty and WNBA, visit Newsweek Sports.
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