The Savannah Bananas, a baseball team that draws comparisons with the Harlem Globetrotters and travels the country playing exhibition games, will visit Baltimore on Aug. 1 and 2. While the games are sold out, some (pricey) tickets remain on the secondary market.

Here’s how to watch the Bananas when they visit Camden Yards. Both games are scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Are tickets still available?

Tickets are only available via third-party sites like Stubhub. The Bananas recommend buying tickets through the team’s lottery system, but with those sold out, it’s likely some fans will turn toward the secondary market. If they do, they’ll be facing a steep price.

Stubhub lists most remaining tickets at $130 or more, with some tickets going for well over $300. It’s common for Bananas games to sell out through the team’s lottery process, with secondary market tickets often costing hundreds of dollars. As the Orioles limp toward August and attendance numbers dwindle, the Bananas offer a stark contrast in fan interest.

It’s not yet known if the Bananas will visit Baltimore again in future seasons.

The ballclub visited Washington earlier this year, hosting a game at Nationals Park. The Bananas will compete in Philadelphia this weekend at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Phillies.

Can I watch the games on TV?

Yes. While it’s not the same experience as watching in the ballpark, both Bananas games at Camden Yards will air on ESPN networks. Friday’s game will air on ESPN, and Saturday’s game will be shown on ESPN2.

Fans won’t have to choose between watching the Orioles or the Bananas, as Baltimore faces the Cubs in Chicago at 2:20 p.m. on both Aug. 1 and 2. Those games should be completed well before the Bananas start.

Viewers should expect celebrity guests at the upcoming Bananas games, but the team isn’t giving any hints as to who might show up in Baltimore.

“Those are indeed kept top secret until game day!” a Bananas spokesman said.

Whoever shows up will perform in front of a packed house.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

Shell Shock, coached by former Terps standout Juan Dixon, defeated NXT ERA Elite in the James Madison regional final of The Basketball Tournament, a 64-team event with a $1 million prize awarded to the winning team. Shell Shock won, 68-62, despite trailing by 11 points in the opening moments of the nine-minute fourth quarter.

The team looked to be on its way out of the tournament before catching fire from the field and stringing defensive stops together. Shell Shock leaned on a pair of non-Terps with Maryland ties to complete the comeback, ending the game on a 21-4 run.

Of the team’s final 21 points, former Maryland Eastern Shore guard Kevon Voyles scored six and former Coppin State wing Anthony Tarke added eight. Tarke, who played under Dixon at Coppin State in 2020-21, finished the game with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

TBT features a unique finish, known as the Elam Ending. Once there’s a stoppage at or under four minutes left in the final quarter, the clock shuts off. There then becomes a target score for winning, which is eight points above the leading team’s score. In this case, the game paused with Shell Shock leading 59-58, meaning the first team to reach 67 would win.

Tarke scored Shell Shock’s first six points of the Elam Ending before ex-Houston Christian standout Ronald March drilled an NBA-range 3-pointer to send Shell Shock into the next round. His teammates rushed the floor to celebrate as the shot went through the hoop. March led the team with 21 points.

WOW, RONALD MARCH PULLS UP FROM THE LOGO FOR THE WIN! @TBTTerps win the JMU Region. pic.twitter.com/IHcXCCxf4g

— TBT (@thetournament) July 23, 2025

The team is now just three wins away from capturing the TBT title, despite not having guards Melo Trimble or Eric Ayala available through the opening three games. The two former Maryland guards are nursing knee injuries but could potentially become available in the later rounds.

Former Terps standout Darryl Morsell handled facilitating duties Tuesday with Trimble and Ayala injured, finishing with 11 points, four rebounds and four assists. The 2021 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year also played a key role defensively, pressuring NXT ERA Elite guards.

Former San Jose State guard Sage Tolbert led NXT ERA Elite with 13 points. Chol Marial, a 7-footer who began his college career at Maryland, went scoreless on 0-for-6 shooting, but he did add six rebounds and two assists for NXT ERA Elite.

Diamond Stone, a former five-star recruit and Terps standout in 2015, was a nonfactor. The center scored just two points on 1-for-5 shooting in 12 minutes, as he spent most of the second half on the bench as both teams went with smaller lineups. He could play a bigger role in Shell Shock’s next game, as he averaged 19 points per game in the team’s first two wins.

Even without a meaningful second-half role, Stone was among the first players off the bench to greet his teammates during their second-half surge. He added four rebounds in the victory.

Shell Shock advances to face Best Virginia, a West Virginia alumni team, in the TBT quarterfinals on Monday at 6 p.m. The two college programs have played 39 times and met most recently in 2023, with Maryland winning an NCAA Tournament game, 67-65. Monday’s TBT game will be played at the Charleston Coliseum in West Virginia.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

ROUND OF 16: Watch the Game Highlights from Shell Shock vs. NXT ERA Elite, 07/22/2025 pic.twitter.com/kJma0GzqsN

— TBT (@thetournament) July 23, 2025

“I lost my locker room,” Locksley said in March.

The Terps’ coach reiterated those thoughts Tuesday at Big Ten media days in Las Vegas, as he looked back on Maryland’s dreadful 4-8 campaign in 2024. The team won just one conference game, dropping five consecutive contests to end the season, including an ugly 44-7 loss to Penn State to end the year. The Terps missed out on a bowl game for the first time in three seasons.

“We had haves and have nots for the first time in our locker room,” said Locksley, referring to NIL deals for some of the players on his roster. “The landscape of college football taught me a valuable lesson. And that valuable lesson is, it’s important for me, even in the midst of this change, to continue to educate our players on the importance of playing for something bigger than yourself.”

Locksley set up a unique sign outside the team’s locker room ahead of the 2025 season to combat selfishness.

"When you enter those doors, we'll all pay the same price for success or failure."

Michael Locksley shares the message posted outside the @TerpsFootball locker room this season #B1GFootball pic.twitter.com/6aFNYemEdf

— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) July 22, 2025

“That sign reads, ‘You can leave your Louis [Vuitton] belts, your car keys and your financial statement outside this locker room. Because when you enter those doors, we’ll all pay the same price for success or failure,’” Locksley said.

Locksley says revenue sharing — colleges can pay athletes directly as of July 1 — should reduce some of the financial gaps between players that led to trouble this past season. He shared optimism that a more even playing field will lead to a better locker room dynamic.

Don’t tell that to prognosticators.

USA Today’s Big Ten preseason poll — the league no longer releases a preseason poll — picks the Terps to finish 17th out of 18 teams. ESPN’s Football Power Index ranks Maryland 61st nationally, which is 16th among Big Ten teams. ESPN’s SP+ has the Terps 70th as of late May. For comparison, Navy ranks 68th in SP+.

The expectations are low in Locksley’s seventh season guiding the Terps. He’s yet to post a winning record in league play, although he led the Terps to bowl wins in 2021, 2022 and 2023. After a four-win season, reaching a bowl game would be a welcomed return. That’s possible, with the Terps avoiding Big Ten powers Oregon, Penn State and Ohio State this fall, but FanDuel lists the Terps over/under for wins at just 4 1/2.

Regardless of how outside outlets view the Terps entering 2025, Locksley is intent on focusing internally.

“If I’ve got to put my desk in the locker room this year, I will,” he said.

Locksley doesn’t want to repeat last year.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

Count former Terps standout Diamond Stone among the hoops obsessed.

The AUBC hosted a regional of The Basketball Tournament, a 64-team event that hands out a $1 million prize to its winning team. Filled with current professionals, excluding NBA talent, the tournament has required solid play to win since its inception in 2014.

Shell Shock, the No. 2 seed in the James Madison regional, is one step closer. The team, composed mostly of former Maryland players like Stone, won its first-round game, 75-74, over Love Virginia.

Stone scored 15 points and added seven rebounds in just 19 minutes of play.

“Diamond is a problem,” coach Juan Dixon, a former Terps star who coached Coppin State from 2017 before his firing in 2023, said after the win. “He’s a heck of an offensive talent. He can shoot it from deep. He can play off the dribble. We all know that he’s a force in the paint.”

The past few years have affirmed how much Stone loves the sport regardless of outside recognition. Friday was another example. Stone, a former five-star recruit who played for the Terps in 2015-16 and became the Big Ten’s Newcomer of the Year in his lone college season, was picked in the second round of the 2016 NBA draft. His NBA career was short-lived, however.

Stone bounced around G League teams before making his way overseas. Now, he’s one of the best players for the Zavkhan Brothers, a team in The League, a professional league in Mongolia. He made his presence known offensively Friday.

Dixon says that Diamond’s minutes were limited, especially late, because of Love Virginia’s guard-heavy lineup and a few defensive lulls.

“He needs to guard better so he can get extended minutes,” Dixon said.

Shell Shock was without a few key contributors in its win, as Melo Trimble missed the game with a knee injury. Trimble, a former top-50 recruit, was a standout for the Terps from 2014 through 2017. After going undrafted, he spent a year in the G League before heading international, too. He’s now playing a starring role for CSKA Moscow in Russia. His status for the rest of the tournament is to be determined.

“Man, we need Melo Trimble bad, right?” Dixon said. “Melo is trying to get healthy, dealing with the knee issue. His health is most important, so hopefully we can get him some time throughout the tournament, but we trust the guys that we have in the locker room right now.”

It was Ronald March, a former Houston Christian standout, who picked up the slack. The 6-5 guard finished with a team-high 24 points, including the game-winning free throws. Former Maryland guard Darryl Morsell (Mount Saint Joseph) chipped in 10 points in the victory, helping Shell Shock advance to the next round. The team will face No. 3 seed Red Rose Thunder, which made a regional final in 2024, on Sunday at 1 p.m. The game can be streamed on YouTube.

“We’re pretty confident that we can get another one Sunday,” Dixon said.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

Queen, a Baltimore native and former Maryland star, underwent left wrist surgery to repair a torn ligament, the team announced Friday. He suffered the injury on July 15 in a game against the Trail Blazers, and the Pelicans will reevaluate the first-round pick in approximately three months.

The NBA season tips off Oct. 21, meaning that Queen could be in jeopardy of missing the beginning of New Orleans’ season. It’s a disappointing development for the 20-year-old after a promising start to his professional career.

The former St. Frances star averaged 14 points and 11 rebounds over three NBA Summer League games, shooting 43.8% from the field and 50% from 3-point range. Queen is expected to receive significant playing time for the Pelicans as a rookie after showcasing his unique skill set in one season with the Terps.

Queen led Maryland to a Sweet 16 appearance this past season, averaging 16.9 points and 9.0 rebounds per game on 52.6% shooting as a true freshman. He won Big Ten Freshman of the Year honors, becoming the first Terp to win the award since Joe Smith in 1994. Queen’s buzzer-beater in the second round of the NCAA Tournament sent the Terps to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2016 and cemented his legacy within the program despite only spending one year in College Park. He went semi-viral for his quotes after the game-winning shot, as he took the time to shout out Baltimore.

He was then drafted 13th overall in this year’s NBA draft following a bold move up the board by New Orleans, which parted with an unprotected 2026 first-round pick in a deal with the Atlanta Hawks. The 6-foot-10 Queen’s ability to pass, dribble and score is unique for his size. Some scouts have said that he needs defensive improvement to thrive in the NBA, but there are little doubts about Queen’s offensive game. New Orleans will use him in a frontcourt that also features Zion Williamson.

The next step in Queen’s development, however, will take place after an unexpected injury delay.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

“I actually decided to retire a couple weeks ago, and it’s been a lot of fun being able to be around the family a lot more,” Gibson said.

Gibson spent 2023 with the Orioles, starting a team-high 33 games for Baltimore’s 101-win team. The right-hander won 15 games, posting a 4.73 ERA across 192 innings. Following the 2023 season, Gibson signed with the St. Louis Cardinals. He briefly returned to Baltimore this season, but struggled for the Orioles in his second stint with the team, allowing 23 earned runs in 12 1/3 innings of work.

The Orioles cut Gibson after four starts. He signed with Tampa Bay but didn’t have a major league opportunity with the ballclub. After discussions with his family, the 37-year-old decided to call it a career. In addition to the Orioles and Cardinals, Gibson pitched for the Twins, Rangers and Phillies. He spent seven seasons with the Twins from 2013 through 2019 to begin his MLB career, logging 150 or more innings in five of the seven years.

In his career, Gibson pitched 1,878 innings and posted a 4.60 ERA. He made one All-Star Game (2021) and struck out 1,520 batters while finishing with a 112-111 record.

Gibson suggested that coaching could be in his future, but for now, he’s focused on being with his family. Gibson, who is married and has four children, says his grandfather offered sage advice as he contemplated retirement in recent weeks.

“He said, ‘Well, Kyle, watching those kids grow up only happens once, and if you miss it, I feel like you miss everything in life,’” Gibson said. “That was a big part of my decision is trying to be around and be a dad and be a husband that I know I can be and that I want to be.”

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

Welcome back pot bunkers, hard fairways, gusty winds and slower greens. Coffee golf has returned for the final major championship of the season.

“Obviously, I’m a little bit biased, but I think it’s one of the best venues, and you look at it in this weather, and I think it’s just incredible,” said Shane Lowry, the 2019 Open Champion at Royal Portrush, during his news conference Monday. “The golf course, I played it this morning, I think it’s perfect right now. I think it’s ready for a great week of golf.”

Here are 10 players poised to contend at the year’s final major championship, which will be hosted at Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland:

10. Justin Rose

The 44-year-old finished second at the Masters earlier this year, and he finished in a tie for second at last year’s Open. He came in 20th in 2019, when Royal Portrush previously hosted this championship.

This past week in Scotland, Rose finished sixth after firing a 63 in Sunday’s final round. Don’t count him out in majors, even at his age.

9. Adam Scott

Another 44-year-old, Scott has a pair of top 20s at majors this season, and he’s won an Open Championship before. Scott has been steady all season, including a top-20 finish this past week in Scotland.

He’s not the favorite to win this week, but like Rose, his experience holds value. Scott made this list over Lowry, another veteran capable of contending this weekend. Lowry, an Irishman, embraced the supportive crowd back in 2019.

8. Tommy Fleetwood

Fleetwood has struggled to close out tournaments in recent seasons — the Englishman has yet to win on the PGA Tour in his career, although he has won seven European Tour events. Still, he’s an exceptional player. Only Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Sepp Straka have better strokes gained statistics this season among PGA Tour players, and that trio has combined for eight PGA Tour wins this year.

It’s hard to comprehend how Fleetwood plays so well without winning. If he can get over the mental hurdle of finishing off a pressure-packed tournament, Fleetwood has as good a chance as anyone this week. But that’s a big “if.”

7. Xander Schauffele

The defending Open champion has to be on this list. He’s yet to win this season, but he’s finished inside the top 15 at two of his past three events, including the U.S. Open. When golf tournaments gain importance, Schauffele often performs well. He ranks seventh on the PGA Tour in Strokes Gained: Approach. His iron play should put him in the mix this weekend.

6. Ludvig Åberg

After a midseason lull, Åberg looks like a generational talent again. He’s missed four cuts this year, which is surprising for a player with his talent level, but he’s also finished inside the top 20 of three of his past five starts.

The 25-year-old Swede remains inexperienced in major championships, but he has three top-15 finishes in seven career starts. The only drawback? He’s missed the cut in those other four major championship starts.

5. Bryson DeChambeau

The Open is perhaps the lone major DeChambeau hasn’t figured out. He has one top 10 in seven career starts, and he’s missed the cut three times. Still, he’s one of the best golfers on the planet.

It’s only a matter of time before DeChambeau, who Data Golf pegs as the world’s No. 4 player, finds himself with a chance to win this championship.

4. Tyrell Hatton

The 33-year-old Englishman finished sixth here in 2019, and he’s fresh off a fourth-place finish at this year’s U.S. Open. The knock on him is always his subpar attitude, but it hasn’t held him back much in 2025.

3. Jon Rahm

Rahm has finished inside the top 15 at all three majors this season — so much for the narrative that a move to LIV is hurting his game. With a talent level that puts him among the best to ever play the game, the two-time major champion should win his third soon.

Will this be the week? He covets this championship.

“In my opinion, the Open Championship is the most prestigious event you can win in golf,” Rahm said at his Tuesday news conference. “For my understanding of the game and the history of the game, I think the Claret Jug is the most special one.”

2. Rory McIlroy

A home game for the legendary golfer from Northern Ireland, McIlroy could complete the greatest season of his career by winning both The Masters and The Open in his home country. He’s coming off a second-place finish and has seemingly regained his form after a dip following his Masters victory.

“When I was looking at the calendar for 2025, this was the tournament that was probably, I don’t know, circled, even more so than the Masters for different reasons,” McIlroy said at a news conference this week. “It’s lovely to be coming in here already with a major and everything else that’s happened this year.

“I’m excited with where my game is. I felt like I showed some really good signs last week. I feel like I’m in a good spot and had — not that last week was a pure preparation week, but I definitely feel like it put me in a good spot heading into here.”

1. Scottie Scheffler

Well, duh. He’s finished inside the top eight at six of the past seven major championships, winning twice during that span. Dating to 2023, he’s finished inside the top 10 in nine of his 11 major championship starts. Scheffler is the best player in the world for a reason. He does everything well, and he’s usually closer to winning than he is to missing a cut.

Just missed the cut: Russell Henley, Collin Morikawa, Shane Lowry, Sepp Straka, Justin Thomas

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

The annual survey asked writers to rank the top five players at several positions, including quarterback. Not only did Jackson, a two-time NFL Most Valuable Player, fall short of earning the top spot, but he wasn’t ranked second or third, either.

Instead, Jackson ranked fourth. He came in behind the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, the Bills’ Josh and the Bengals’ Joe Burrow. Yes, Jackson was ranked as the second-best quarterback in his own division.

The Eagles’ Jalen Hurts checked in at No. 5, meaning quarterbacks such as the Commanders’ Jayden Daniels, the Rams’ Matthew Stafford and the Lions’ Jared Goff all missed the cut.

• No. 1, Patrick Mahomes
• No. 2, Josh Allen
• No. 3, Joe Burrow
• No. 4, Lamar Jackson
• No. 5, Jalen Hurts

Of course, the survey doesn’t mean much — other than maybe bragging rights among fan bases. The league’s elite quarterbacks care much more about ending the season as a Super Bowl champion, and it was Hurts who won last year’s title. Allen, Burrow and Jackson have never won championships, while Mahomes and Hurts both have rings.

It’s possible Jackson and the Ravens get over the proverbial hump in 2025, with sportsbooks considering Baltimore a favorite to win the Super Bowl. This past season, Jackson eclipsed 5,000 total yards, throwing 41 touchdown passes compared with only four interceptions. He finished runner-up to Allen in AP NFL MVP voting, and the Ravens were knocked out of the playoffs in the divisional round by Allen’s Bills.

The AP summary of why Jackson checked in at No. 4 cited his lack of postseason success:

“​​Jackson is coming off his third All-Pro season and the best all-around year of his career. He threw for 4,172 yards, 41 TDs and only four interceptions, and led the NFL with a 119.6 passer rating. He also ran for 915 yards and four scores. But Jackson and the Ravens fell short in the playoffs again, losing to the Bills in the divisional round. Jackson got one second-place vote, four thirds, two fourths and one fifth.”

ESPN ran a similar poll, although it anonymously polled league personnel rather than media members. Just like the AP survey, Jackson checked in at No. 4 behind the same three quarterbacks. ESPN NFL analyst Damien Woody was surprised by Jackson’s ranking.

“You’ve got the two-time league MVP at No. 4,” Woody said. “That’s about the damndest thing that I’ve seen. You talk about a guy in Lamar Jackson, arguably the most dangerous quarterback that we have in our game. A guy who’s improved every year as a passer, and he’s sitting at No. 4. It just goes to show the strength that we have in our league at the quarterback position.”

ESPN’s ranking extended through the top 10 NFL quarterbacks, rather than just top five:

1. Patrick Mahomes
2. Josh Allen
3. Joe Burrow
4. Lamar Jackson
5. Jayden Daniels
6. Matthew Stafford
7. Justin Herbert
8. Jared Goff
9. Jalen Hurts
10. Baker Mayfield

The AP also revealed its voting for the NFL’s top five running backs this week, and Baltimore’s Derrick Henry checked in at No. 2. Only Philadelphia’s Saquon Barkley ranked higher. The Lions’ Jahmyr Gibbs, the Falcons’ Bijan Robinson and the 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey rounded out the top five.

• No. 1, Saquon Barkley
• No. 2, Derrick Henry
• No. 3, Jahmyr Gibbs
• No. 4, Bijan Robinson
• No. 5, Christian McCaffrey

In his first season in Baltimore, Henry rushed for 1,921 yards and 16 touchdowns in the regular season. The physical runner added 270 yards and three rushing touchdowns in a pair of playoff games, nearly giving the Ravens enough of a postseason boost to reach the Super Bowl. His Herculean efforts didn’t result in a Lombardi Trophy, but they did earn him a contract extension.

Jackson might be next in line for a new deal. The Ravens are hopeful the tandem can remain productive in Baltimore for the foreseeable future and lead them to their first Super Bowl victory since 2013.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

It’s unclear what was discussed during the meeting, but the White House invited the two coaches to visit, according to a USA Today report.

John Harbaugh has spoken about Trump publicly a few times in recent years. He voiced support of a policy suggestion in 2015, before Trump’s first election victory in 2016. After a practice in August of 2015, Harbaugh said he backed the idea of building a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

“I’m going Trump here. Build a wall, it’s not that hard. You don’t have a border, you don’t have a country. You’re not a country without a border, right?” Harbaugh said. “At the same time, we’ve got 12 [million] to 15 million hard-working people here. Give them a shot! Give them a chance to become a citizen so they’re paying taxes. All of us know that it’s not that complicated. But this side doesn’t want to solve it and neither does this side. Neither one of them wants to solve the problem. Solve the problem! It’d be done that fast.”

Outside of those spur-of-the-moment 2015 comments, the coach often keeps his political views to himself.

In 2017, he said he stood by his team when several players took a knee during the national anthem before a game in London. Ravens players decided to kneel after Trump said at a rally earlier that year that any player who knelt during “The Star-Spangled Banner” should be fired by team owners. Harbaugh’s comments spoke more to his team’s togetherness than the political divide.

“The truth of the matter is, or the way I look at it, I think that’s a really good thing,” Harbaugh said of the protests. “I think that’s a good thing [that] it’s getting talked about. I think it’s something that’s a positive. It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be painful. It’s a tough conversation, but as for us here, as a football coach, my perspective of our team, I love our players and I support our players. A team is about unity. A team is about one accord. A team is a brotherhood.”

Neither Harbaugh brother publicly endorsed a presidential candidate before the 2024 election. Both coaches also visited during Barack Obama’s presidency, with John visiting in 2013 and Jim visiting in 2015.

Harbaugh and the Ravens open training camp for the 2025 NFL season on July 22 in Owings Mills. Rookies report to camp Tuesday.

If all goes according to plan, Harbaugh will take another visit to the White House after the 2025 season as a Super Bowl champion. Sports betting odds suggest the Ravens have as good a chance as any team to accomplish the feat this season.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.

“It’s tough when you talk to officials, and I asked them, ‘Hey, we’ve only been to the free throw line twice up until the fourth quarter,’ and she tells me it’s not her job,” Reese said at her postgame news conference. “So it’s frustrating because I know how hard we are battling inside. … I think this is a leaping step for us, and obviously we know we can compete with the best, but [the officiating] has to be fixed. And I don’t give a damn if I get fined because that s— is cheap, and I’m tired of this s—. ‘Cause I’ve been nice, and I’ve been humble with it, but I am tired of this s—.”

The Sky attempted just eight free throws in the defeat, compared with 17 attempts for the Lynx. With the loss, Chicago fell to 5-12 on the season. Only the Connecticut Sun (2-16) have a worse record this season, which might be contributing to some of the Sky’s frustrations in recent games.

Reese played well in Sunday’s loss, scoring 16 points to go with 17 rebounds. She was a perfect 2-for-2 from the line. Chicago’s coach, Tyler Marsh, seemed to agree with Reese’s sentiment about the lack of foul calls, although he was more hesitant to put himself at risk for a fine.

“It’s hard to imagine that we would only have eight free throws with the amount of opportunities that we have in the paint,” Marsh said. “I think that we’re top two or three in the league in terms of shots at the rim, but in the bottom three or four in the league in terms of getting to the free-throw line. The reason for that, I’m not sure … for us to not get to the line more than that is a little frustrating.”

Other faces of the WNBA have also taken issue with the league’s officials this season, including Sparks guard Kelsey Plum and Fever coach Stephanie White.

“I drive more than anyone in the league, so to shoot six free throws is f—— absurd,” Plum said after a June 9 defeat to the Valkyries. “I got scratches on my face, I got scratches on my body, and these guards on the other team get these ticky-tack fouls, and I’m sick of it. … I don’t know what I need to do. I’ve talked to the refs nice, I pray before the game, like, f—, I’m over it.”

Despite Sunday’s frustrations, Reese has played her best basketball of the season lately, posting double-doubles in five straight games and averaging 17 points and 17.4 rebounds per game during the span. She’s also flashed elite passing skills for a forward, tallying at least six assists in three of her past five games.

On the season, Reese is averaging 12.6 points and 12.8 rebounds per game on 40.9% shooting. She’s averaging 3.9 assists per contests, too, well above her 2024 average of 1.9 assists per game. The WNBA’s leading rebounder was named an All-Star Game reserve over the weekend.

Reese and the Sky visit Fairfax, Virginia, on Tuesday for a matchup with the Washington Mystics. The game tips off at 11:30 a.m. inside EagleBank Arena.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.