Tag: Aari McDonald

Sparks’ Aari McDonald got so keyed in on guarding Caitlin Clark that she almost forgot her second free throw

Hey, we’d probably forget it, too.

Guarding a generational talent in Indiana Fever rookie guard Caitlin Clark is a tall task for even the most elite WNBA defender.

For Los Angeles Sparks guard Aari McDonald, she got so keyed in on making sure Clark had someone guarding her during Tuesday night’s game at one point that she almost forgot to shoot a second free throw.

Indeed, McDonald had a second attempt waiting for her at the line when she transitioned too quickly to guarding Clark for the next Fever offensive possession. The only problem was that McDonald still had another attempt waiting for her after she got fouled.

It took a friendly reminder on the court for McDonald to head back to the charity stripe for her second attempt.

Clark is as dangerous as anyone playing in the WNBA when she gets open for a shot, so McDonald’s head was in the right place to make sure she was guarded. However, you don’t want to miss out on that free throw attempt!

It was an honest mistake and a very human moment for McDonald, one we’d probably make ourselves if we had to guard Clark on the court.

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Arizona’s Aari McDonald was stunningly close to a title-winning buzzer beater over 3 people

So. Close.

The Stanford Cardinal captured their first women’s basketball championship in 29 years on Sunday with a thrilling 54-53 win over the Arizona Wildcats.

But for the Arizona, the surprising run to the title game was all about breakout star Aari McDonald. The senior averaged 24.8 points during the NCAA Tournament and came inches away from giving Arizona the championship at the buzzer.

The Wildcats had the ball on an inbounds play with 6.1 seconds to play and a timeout remaining. And despite a well-defended effort from Stanford, Arizona elected to hold off on that last timeout when McDonald managed to get the ball off the inbounds.

While Arizona coach Adia Barnes may second-guess that decision going forward, McDonald was so close to cashing in on the broken play.

With three Stanford players defending, McDonald shot a turnaround jumper that hit off the back of the rim to the left. Still, it nearly went it. And this was what it took from Stanford to get McDonald to miss that shot:

Just wild.

McDonald finished the game with 22 points and was the main reason Arizona even had a chance at the end.

Still, what a game. You almost expected it to go in once she got a shot off.

https://youtu.be/VB1zpeaqoQE