Bombshell Announcement: Angel Reese Strategic Foul, Hits Cardoso In The Face!

Angel Reese whacks Kamilla Cardoso in face and given intentional foul during LSU vs South Carolina

Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso have an intense rivalry, and it culminated in some fireworks in the SEC Tournament final on Sunday afternoon in a battle of top-25 programs

Angel Reese received an intentional foul against South Carolina. (Image: Getty Images)

LSU star Angel Reese was assessed an intentional foul for hitting South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso in the face with her arm during the second quarter of the SEC Tournament final. It gave the Gamecocks two free throws and possession.

Reese and Cardoso have history with one another, going at it in an intense regular-season clash earlier this year. In that contest, Cardoso stared down Reese on several occasions before South Carolina earned a comeback victory.

LSU entered Sunday’s postseason contest eager to ruin the perfect record of its SEC rivals. South Carolina barely escaped in the semi-final against Tennessee to improve to 31-0, so the Tigers wanted to finish the job while taking home a coveted trophy.

Against that backdrop, the SEC Tournament final was physical from the get-go. Moments before Reese contacted Cardoso in the face, Cardoso appeared to give Reese a push under the basket at the other end.

They also exchanged trash talk throughout the first half. On one occasion, Reese appeared to pull Cardoso’s hair in an incident that went unseen by referees.

Reese and Cardoso are two of the best players in the SEC, with the LSU forward winning SEC Player of the Year. Both are expected to be taken in the first round of the 2024 WNBA Draft if they enter.

Angel Reese appeared to get away with a hair pull early in the first half before receiving an intentional foul in the second quarter. ( 
Image:
ESPN)
Throughout the season, Reese has played with a trademark fire that’s sometimes toed the line of trouble. For example, she received a technical a couple of weeks ago for a tussle with Texas A&M.

Teammate Flau’jae Johnson came to her defense in that instance, mocking the Aggies for trailing by double digits as they angrily swarmed Reese following a hard foul.

Then, against Tennessee, Reese appeared to tell a rival, “Who are you talking to? You better not be talking to me,” before seemingly adding, “Watch your mouth.”

South Carolina isn’t afraid to play with an edge either – even though head coach Dawn Staley has repeatedly asked her players to tone it down.

“They’re so young, they’re so free,” Staley said this year. “They’re free, and sometimes free is wrong. … Sometimes it looks great, and other times it’s just flat-out wrong. And the wrong part is what keeps us up.”

LSU’s emotions on Sunday aren’t solely related to its matchup with South Carolina. The Tigers have been forced to play short-handed because of injuries, with Last-Tear Poa’s serious head injury in the semi-final leaving players in tears and Mikaylah Williams competing at less than 100 percent because of a foot problem.

Reese twisted her ankle earlier in the SEC Tournament and arrived at the arena for the final in a walking boot. She still started for head coach Kim Mulkey.

Angel Reese Says She Had to ‘Walk Away’ from Massive Fight That Broke Out During SEC Championship Game

The scuffle began after South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso shoved LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson to the ground, and resulted in six ejections

David Livingston/FilmMagic; Eakin Howard/Getty

Angel Reese; the fight that broke out during at the 2024 SEC Women’s Tournament championship game

LSU’s Angel Reese is speaking out after a fight broke out between her teammates and South Carolina players during the SEC Women’s Tournament championship game.

The college basketball star, 21, did not participate in the fight, which broke out in the fourth quarter of the Sunday game and resulted in the ejection of six players.

On Monday, she shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) explaining her decision to “walk away.”

“As a person at my STATUS, sometimes you have to walk away from certain situations,” the LSU star wrote, before noting that she was also grappling with an injury when the scuffle occurred.

“Mind you the play before that I had rolled my ankle AGAIN and was already walking to the bench,” she wrote. “I ALWAYS ride for mine. I’m super proud of this team & super excited for march. #geauxtigers.”

The fight began after South Carolina’s MiLaysia Fulwiley stole the ball from LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson, who then grabbed her and was called for an intentional fall.

While heading to the bench, Johnson bumped South Carolina’s Ashlyn Watkins, whose teammate Kamilla Cardoso then stepped in, shoving Johnson to the ground.

Following the fight, Cardoso was ejected. The five other players who were ejected — all for leaving the bench area — were South Carolina players Chloe Kitts, Tessa Johnson and Sakima Walker, and LSU players Aalyah Del Rosario and Janae Kent, ESPN reported.

Eakin Howard/Getty

Angel Reese during the SEC Women’s Tournament championship game

Only LSU’s five starters, including Reese, remained after the ejections, per ESPN.

On Monday, Cardoso addressed her involvement in the fight on X, writing, “I would like to extend my sincerest apologies for my actions during today’s game.”

“My behavior was not representative of who I am as a person or the South Carolina program, and I deeply regret any discomfort or inconvenience it may have caused,” she continued. “I take full responsibility for my actions and assure you that I am committed to conducting myself with the utmost respect and sportsmanship in the future.”

Addressing the tussle in a Sunday press conference, LSU head coach Kim Mulkey said 6-foot-7 Cardoso getting involved in the fight — and specifically, pushing 5-foot-10 guard Johnson — was “uncalled for.”

Eakin Howard/Getty

The fight that broke out during at the 2024 SEC Women’s Tournament championship game

“It’s ugly. It’s not good. No one wants to be a part of that. No one wants to see that ugliness,” Mulkey said of the fight. “But I can tell you this: I wish she would have pushed Angel Reese. Don’t push a kid.”

“Don’t push somebody that little,” she added. “That was uncalled for in my opinion. Let those two girls that were jawing, let them go at it.”

In her own press conference, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley also addressed the fight, and specifically star player Cardoso’s actions.

“I haven’t been to the locker room yet, but I mean Kamilla understands. She really understands,” the coach said. “I think if you talk to Kamilla about things, she’d probably say she let her emotions get the best of her, and she’s got to handle them better.

“She’s got to be better,” Staley continued. “She’s that important to our team, that important to the state of women’s basketball. Kamilla’s a star, and we just really can’t have her in a position where she’s in the locker room for anything other than halftime in the basketball games.”