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Auerbach: Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese providing fuel for a long-standing WNBA rivalry

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Auerbach: Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese providing fuel for a long-standing WNBA rivalry

INDIANAPOLIS — Even if one or both sides won’t officially acknowledge the existence of a new rivalry, there are always signs — and sounds.

For example, the very loud boos from Indiana Fever fans whenever Chicago Sky rookie Angel Reese went to the free-throw line. Or the very loud cheers from those same fans when Reese (and Kamilla Cardoso) picked up fouls.

The only noise louder than the crowd’s swell when Reese picked up her fifth foul early in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game was for the T-shirt cannon.

That’s what burgeoning rivalries are supposed to sound like. They’re marked by good, old-fashioned hate; you root against your rival just as fervently as you root for your favorite team. And the Sky versus the Fever is giving us exactly that.

These teams have played twice so far this season, with Indiana victorious twice in tight games. The first matchup needs few reminders, as the Chennedy Carter hip-check on Caitlin Clark made that game rather memorable (and controversial). Sunday’s game featured Reese swatting for the ball but inadvertently smacking Clark in the head as she attempted a layup, a foul that was correctly upgraded to a Flagrant 1 after a brief officials’ review.

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Angel Reese foul on Caitlin Clark upgraded to flagrant

Those interactions might lead the sports debate shows, but they’re such a minor part of what could very well become one of the best rivalries in the WNBA. This is about Reese and Clark, who have faced off in two of the most memorable NCAA Tournament games in recent history and are now household names. This is about Cardoso, who has already established herself as a force in the paint as a pro despite dealing with an early-season injury. This is about Aliyah Boston, last year’s WNBA Rookie of the Year who is playing her best basketball now. This is about Carter, a game-changer for Chicago when she’s on the court.

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This is about a treasure trove of elite young talent, who play in cities located just three hours apart. The teams boast six players combined who were top-four picks in the past four WNBA drafts. These are organizations starved for some success, now with the pieces that can help them build it.

After the Fever’s 91-83 win over the Sky on Sunday, Chicago guard Marina Mabrey said she doesn’t see the matchup as a rivalry, adding that it’s probably only something like that for “new fans.”

But even if it’s fueled by new-to-the-W fans, that’s the point. It’s an obvious entry point for fans of Clark or Reese, or anyone who was part of the record-setting audiences that tuned in for women’s college basketball over the past couple of seasons. The public has already been drawn to these players and their personalities, and they want to see what happens when they continue to clash, even with different names on the front of their jerseys. Fever coach Christie Sides, who spent the first six years of her WNBA coaching career in Chicago, said it is a rivalry that has existed before, but what’s different about now is that it features two “really good, young teams that are trying to figure it out with great players just getting better every game.”

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Fever outlast Sky: 3 takeaways

Clark, for her part, also understands why fans are drawn to this specific matchup. It’s because of her and because of Reese.

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“It’s just the emotion and passion that we play with — I think people love to see that,” Clark said. “That’s maybe not something that was always appreciated in women’s sports, and it should be. I think that’s what makes it fun. We’re competitors. That’s the way the game should be. It’s gonna get a little feisty. It’s gonna get a little physical, but at the end of the day, both teams are just trying to win.

“Obviously, I’ve played her for a very long time, and she’s been a tremendous player. It’s been fun getting to compete against (Reese). I think it’s been really good for the game. People just love seeing great matchups, but also, at the same time, the people tune in for these matchups (between us), but then they get to see how amazing these teams are, and then they find new players to support and continue to come back for them, too.”

Or maybe they’ll watch an incredible back-and-forth game and find new players they want to root against. Which is also fine, because that’s sports. Everything means a little bit more if there’s just more fuel added to the fire.

(Photo of Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese: Emilee Chinn / Getty Images)

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Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo makes NBA history with 83-point game

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Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo makes NBA history with 83-point game

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Miami Heat star Bam Adebayo made NBA history on Tuesday night.

Adebayo scored 83 points, all while setting league marks for free throws made and attempted in a game for the Miami Heat in a 150-129 win over the Washington Wizards. It is the second-highest scoring game for a player ever, only to Wilt Chamberlain’s famed 100-point game.

“An absolutely surreal night,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters after the game.

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Adebayo started with a 31-point first quarter. He was up to 43 at halftime, 62 by the end of the third quarter. And then came the fourth, when the milestones kept falling despite facing double-, triple- and what once appeared to be a quadruple-team from a Wizards defense that kept sending him to the foul line.

He finished 20 of 43 from the field, 36 of 43 from the foul line, 7 for 22 from 3-point range.

After the game, he was seen in tears while he hugged his mother, Marilyn Blount, before leaving the floor after the game.

“Welp won’t have the highest career high in the house anymore,” Adebayo’s girlfriend, four-time WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, wrote on social media, “but at least it gives me something to go after.”

MAGIC’S ANTHONY BLACK MAKES INCREDIBLE DUNK OVER FOUR DEFENDERS IN HISTORIC NBA GAME

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Bam Adebayo #13 of the Miami Heat celebrates during the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards at Kaseya Center on March 10, 2026, in Miami, Florida.  (Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

The NBA’s previous best this season was 56, by Nikola Jokic for Denver against Minnesota on Christmas night. The last player to have 62 points through three quarters: one of Adebayo’s basketball heroes, Kobe Bryant, who had exactly that many through three quarters for the Los Angeles Lakers against Dallas on Dec. 20, 2005.

He wound up passing Bryant for single-game scoring as well. Bryant’s career-best was 81 — a game that was the second-best on the NBA scoring list for two decades.

Adebayo scored 31 points in the opening quarter against the Wizards, breaking the Heat record for points in any quarter — and tying the team record for points in a first half before the second quarter even started.

He finished the first half with 43 points, a team record for any half and two points better than his previous career high — for a full game, that is — of 41, set Jan. 23, 2021, against Brooklyn.

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Adebayo’s season high entering Tuesday was 32. He matched that with a free throw with 5:53 left in the second quarter, breaking the Heat first-half scoring record.

Adebayo’s 43-point first half was the NBA’s second-best in at least the last 30 seasons — going back to the start of the digital play-by-play era that began in the 1996-97 season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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Kings lose in overtime to the Boston Bruins

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Kings lose in overtime to the Boston Bruins

Charlie McAvoy scored 39 seconds into overtime and Jeremy Swayman stopped 14 shots on Tuesday night to earn the Boston Bruins their 13th straight victory at home, 2-1 over the Kings.

Mason Lohrei scored midway through the third period to break a scoreless tie. But the Kings tied it five minutes later when Drew Doughty’s shot from the blue line deflected off the heel of Bruins forward Elias Lindholm and into the net.

It was the seventh straight time the teams had gone to overtime in Boston.

In the overtime, Mark Kastelic blocked a shot in the defensive zone and made a long pass to David Pastrnak, who waited for McAvoy to come into the zone. The Bruins’ defenseman and U.S. Olympian, who went to the locker room at the end of the second period after taking a puck off his mouth, skated in on Darcy Kuemper and went to his backhand for the winner.

Kuemper stopped 21 shots for the Kings, who entered the night one point out of the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. The victory kept Boston in possession of the East’s second wild-card spot.

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Swayman tied his career high with his 25th win of the season. The Bruins haven’t lost at the TD Garden since before Christmas.

After the game, Kings forward and future Hall of Famer Anze Kopitar stayed on the ice to shake hands with the Bruins after what is expected to be his last game in Boston.

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Jon Jones requests UFC release after Dana White says legend was ‘never’ considered him for White House card

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Jon Jones requests UFC release after Dana White says legend was ‘never’ considered him for White House card

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Mixed martial arts legend Jon Jones ended his retirement from UFC simply because he wanted a spot on the “Freedom 250” fight card at the White House in June. 

But, when UFC CEO Dana White announced the card during UFC 326 this past weekend, Jones wasn’t among the fighters. As a result, he has requested a release from his UFC contract. 

White was candid when asked about Jones following the UFC 326 card. 

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Jon Jones of the United States of America reacts after his TKO victory against Stipe Miocic of the United States of America in the UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 16, 2024 in New York City.  ((Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images))

“Never, ever, ever, which I told you guys a hundred thousands times, was Jon Jones ever even remotely in my mind to fight at the White House,” White explained, per CBS Sports. “Some guy with Meta Glasses filmed him talking about his hips – that his hips are so bad. And I don’t know if you guys saw that flag football game where he can barely run. Jon Jones retired because of his hips. He’s got arthritis in his hips. Apparently, doctors say he should have a hip replacement.”

White added that “the Jon Jones thing is bulls—,” saying that he texted the fighter’s lawyer saying he would never be on the White House card despite Jones saying he was in negotiations for it. 

UFC ANNOUNCES CARD FOR WHITE HOUSE EVENT

The Meta Glasses incident White is referring to came from a viral video, where Jones, unaware he was being filmed, discussed issues with his hips to a fan. 

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On Monday, Jones composed a thorough response to White’s comments about him and the White House Card. He previously posted and deleted social media explanations, but Monday’s appeared to be his final statement on the matter. 

UFC President Dana White speaks after UFC Fight Night at Toyota Center on Feb. 21, 2026.  (Troy Taormina/Imagn Images)

“Yes, I have arthritis in my hip and it’s painful, but that doesn’t mean I can’t fight,” Jones, who retired a heavyweight champion in 2025, said. “So let me get this straight, if I had accepted the lowball offer, suddenly my hip would be fine and I’d be on the White House card? That doesn’t make sense. I even received stem cell treatment last week to get ready for the White House card, and training camp was scheduled to start today. I was preparing to be ready. 

“I understand business deals fall through sometimes, but going out publicly and saying things that aren’t true isn’t right. After everything I’ve given to the UFC, the years, the title defenses, the fights, hearing that I’m ‘done’ is disappointing. Especially when as recently as Friday UFC was calling me trying to get me on that White House card for a much lower number.”

Jones finished his statement by saying he “respectfully” asks to be released from his UFC contract.

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Jon Jones enters the ring before facing Stipe Miocic in the UFC heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on November 16, 2024 in New York City, New York. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

“No more spins, no more games. Thank you to the real fans who know what’s up,” he wrote. 

The UFC did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Fox News Digital.

Jones is considered one of the best UFC fighters of all time, owning a 28-1-1 record, which includes his last bout with Stipe Miocic, knocking him out to take the heavyweight title belt. He is also a two-time light heavyweight champion. 

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