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“Awful”: WNBA Journalist, Broadcasters Waste No Time Calling Out Viral Officiating Blunder Involving Angel Reese’s Teammate

During the Atlanta Dream's semi-final matchup against the New York Liberty, a questionable shooting foul called on Rhyne Howard with 4.5 seconds remaining in the first half drew immediate criticism from media and broadcast teams. The whistle pushed Howard into serious foul trouble as her fourth personal foul of the contest, prompting WNBA reporter Natalie Esquire to label the decision awful on social media.

The broadcast crew echoed this sentiment, noting that Howard's hands and body did not appear to make sufficient contact with Sabrina Ionescu to justify the call. Atlanta was unable to contest the ruling because head coach Karl Smesko had already exhausted the team's single challenge earlier in the first quarter without success.

Although Ionescu missed both resulting free throws, the incident highlighted a first half plagued by physicality and officiating issues, which also saw DeWanna Bonner and Angel Reese accumulate fouls. Despite the frustration, which led to fans chanting at the referees, Jordin Canada stated at halftime that the Dream intended to maintain their aggressive and physical style of play.

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