There are still eight games to go for the Chicago Sky in the 2024 WNBA season, but rookie Angel Reese has already set the league’s all-time mark for rebounds in a single-season.
Reese pulled down 19 rebounds—seven on the offensive end—in a 79–74 loss to the Minnesota Lynx on Sunday to give her 418 on the season.
Reese, the No. 7 overall pick in this year’s draft out of LSU, broke the record of another former Tiger in Sylvia Fowles, who grabbed 404 boards in 2018 while with the Lynx.
In addition to holding the single-season record for most total rebounds, Reese also broke the mark for most offensive rebounds in WNBA history. She now has 165 on the season, which broke Yolanda Griffith’s mark of 162 that had stood for 23 years, as Griffith established the record with the Sacramento Monarchs in 2001.
Attacking the glass is nothing new for Reese who was also dominant on the boards while in college. She led the NCAA in total rebounds in the 2022–23 season before ranking second in the 2023–24 season. She was asked in a post-game press conference about that skill and how easily she’s been able to translate it to the professional ranks.
“A lot of people think it’s because I get my own rebounds, but statistically, it’s not. A lot of people think it’s because I’m the tallest on the court, when I’m not the tallest on the court. It’s being able to go down there and bang, doing things that a lot of people don’t want to do. Defense and rebounding wins championships, and I’ve won championships at every level by just doing that. So, coming into the league, before I sharpen up on the offensive end, just being able to come in and having that on my shoulder as something I can always do, is something that I knew would translate.”
Reese, who wears No. 5, then commented on making history after the game on social media. She reposted a post from the WNBA which recognized the record and added the comment: “Stay down 5! give yourself some grace!! all glory to the man above! 1 Peter 5:10-11.”
The record would have been even sweeter for Reese had it come in a winning effort, but Chicago lost its sixth game in a row to drop its record to 11–21. Fellow rookie Kamilla Cardoso led the Sky with 22 points, while Reese scored 17 herself, to go along with three assists and two steals. However, she also had six turnovers and five personal fouls, with both of those marks tying her WNBA career-highs. Courtney Williams led Minnesota with 22 points, and the difference-maker was the turnover battle as the Sky committed more than twice as many turnovers (21) as the Lynx (10).
With the defeat, Chicago is just one-half game ahead of the Atlanta Dream for the eighth spot in the WNBA standings, with only the top eight teams qualifying for the playoffs. The Sky are attempting to make the postseason for the sixth straight year.
Reese is now averaging 13.1 rebounds for the season, which leads the WNBA. A’ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces ranks second (11.8) and is the only other player averaging in double figures. Reese also leads the league in total rebounds and offensive rebounds, while ranking third in defensive rebounds. But her five-foul game also surged her to the top of the personal fouls leaderboard, as she overtook Kahleah Copper of the Phoenix Mercury.
This is just the latest of WNBA records that Reese has broken during her outstanding debut season. On June 20, she set the league’s rookie record for consecutive double-doubles by notching her seventh in a row. Then 10 days later on June 30, she broke Candace Parker’s league record for the longest double-double streak in a single-season by getting her 10th in a row. Three games later, she then broke Parker’s record for most straight games with a double-double (13) over multiple seasons. Her double-double streak would eventually reach 15 games before coming to an end on July 13.
Reese also recorded three straight games with at least 20 rebounds earlier this season, an unprecedented mark. If she maintains her current rebounding pace of 13.1 per game, that would also set a new WNBA record. She would again best Fowles, who averaged 11.9 back in 2018.
The rookie wasn’t the only player who made history on Sunday. Arike Ogunbowale of the Dallas Wings knocked down 9 of 16 three-point attempts in a 100–93 loss to the Indiana Fever, with the nine makes tying Jewell Loyd and Kelsey Mitchell for the most in a game in WNBA history.
