January 20, 2026
Unrivaled’s week two delivers competitive fire, first wins and a $50,000 prize
Here's everything you need to know from Unrivaled's second week of matchups
The second week of Unrivaled’s 2026 season brought us two club’s first wins of the season and top tier competitive basketball.
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As new players are starting to get a hang of this new style of 3×3 basketball, the competition is heating up with five games under each club’s belt. The Laces BC lead the standings with a 4-1 record and are on a three-game winning streak.
As of now, four clubs (Rose BC, Breeze BC, Phantom BC and Mist BC) are tied for second with a 3-2 record.
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Bueckers hits the jackpot
Unrivaled’s inaugural free-throw challenge has concluded and Breeze BC guard Paige Bueckers has claimed the throne and a $50,000 prize. Bueckers shot a perfect 13 for 13 from the line more than doubling the attempts (6) of Phantom BC guard Tiffany Hayes, who finished in second place.
“I got some plans,” Bueckers told reporters with a smile when asked what she will do with her prize money.
Despite Bueckers remaining in the top spot there was a huge shift in the leaderboard since last week. After going head-to-head with Breeze BC forward Dominique Malonga and Mist BC guard Veronica Burton, Rose BC forward Azurá Stevens dropped to third on the leaderboard.
Stevens remained 100% from the free throw line but didn’t attempt any more in the past week. Malonga dropped to 18th shooting 8/9 (88.9%) and Burton dropped to 29th going 5/7 (71.4%) from the line.
The rules of the game were that the Unrivaled player who had the highest free-throw percentage across their club’s first five games would win a $50,000 prize.
“It’s huge,” Bueckers told reporters regarding how the investment in Unrivaled has allowed them to do prize pools and pay high player salaries. “Just from when I was growing up watching and growing up playing and having all these amazing idols to look up to, and then just to see how much the growth is now and how much accessibility, how many people are investing in women’s sports and women’s basketball specifically, it just means everything to us, because we invest so much into the game, to see other people invest that much into us as well. It’s very motivating, not just for us, but for the next generation to come as well.”
Hive defeat reigning champions
The Hive BC secured their first win of the season on Friday Jan. 16 with a 78-75 victory to hand the reigning champion Rose BC their first loss of the season. The Hive entered halftime with a 44-35 lead and held the Rose to a season low, 17 first-quarter points.
“They just came out a little more aggressive than us, putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, just playing at a little bit of a better tempo, so we dug ourselves in a little bit of a hole, and then, we had to fight back towards the end. But by then, [we] just ran out of time,” Rose BC head coach Nola Henry told reporters on Friday.
The Rose BC made a push in the second half, bringing them within one shot of the winning score (77) but Hive BC guard Kelsey Mitchell beat them to it with a game-winning layup.
“We were being ourselves, we were settled…We learned from the past three games, and we knew, we had to continue to have a great start. We had a great start last game, and we wanted to follow that up this game. And my team was just determined, we were determined to play well and beat this team. And I’m glad it played off,” Hive BC head coach Rena Wakama told reporters postgame.
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Hive BC guard Saniya Rivers went off for a near double-double with 14 points, nine rebounds and two blocks.
“Saniya [Rivers], obviously, is known for her defense, but I was happy for her, to see the ball go in the basket. She had two threes, [went] six for 12, she’s so dynamic man. Sometimes I’m like, ‘wow’, watching her. But the sky’s the limit for her as well, and I’m super happy for her, but we just got to keep her in a great space, and keep her motivated to keep impacting the game,” Wakama said.
Mitchell sat in the press conference shaking her head in agreeance with Wakama on Rivers impact and performance in their win. Mitchell is someone Rivers has been able to learn from as a veteran, especially in a role of leadership.
“When I first got here, our coach assigned us all sixes. So you got somebody’s six, and Saniya Rivers is my six. That’s who I was appointed and she was appointed to me. And so I take it kind of personal knowing [what] our last month and a half has been, when our coach asked [us] to rely on each other…And so when you got somebody’s six, you got their back…. And so I’ve seen her, keep making these strides to kind of be the best player she can be, especially here with unfamiliar territory. And so I’m proud of her. I’m proud of my six,” Mitchell told reporters with a smile.
Rose BC guard Chelsea Gray reached the 400-point club after knocking down a shot with roughly three minutes remaining in the first quarter.
“Chelsea’s Gray’s impact is invaluable, honestly. What she brings to the team, what she brings to the table, can’t really be described. Obviously, she’s been off to a hot start, really good player, 36 points tonight, and like you said, now, has reached the 400 club. But that’s no surprise. That’s just what she does. That’s just the player that she is, and she’s just the ultimate competitor,” Henry told reporters postgame.
Lunar Owl first win
The Lunar Owls BC survived a dog fight to win their first game of the season against the Vinyl BC.
“So just overall, we really came together this week. We had a really tough conversation after last game in the locker room, tough and needed conversation. In these moments, you need to have difficult conversations. We had a good one, and I think it really ignited us.
But we have been, in my opinion, having an upwards trajectory from the first game till now, and we just want to keep that trajectory. It’s been our motto the whole season to be patient and to stack days. If we can be patient and continue to get a little bit better every time we step on the court from practice to games, eventually the tables will turn. And tonight, we got our first one, so it was exciting,” Lunar Owls head coach DJ Sackmann told reporters.
In the third quarter things got chippy between Vinyl BC guard Courtney WIlliams and Lunar Owls BC guard Marina Mabrey leading to a double technical foul call. Later in the game Vinyl BC guard Rhyne Howard and Lunar Owls BC guard Rebecca Allen picked up technicals on two different plays as well.
This game was extremely physical as both sides were showing visual frustration throughout all four quarters. But the Lunar Owls were extra hungry for a win.
“Yeah, it was a very competitive game…Again, we were searching for our first win, and we got it. So that’s how we play, and that’s how we’re going to play every nightmoving forward,” Lunar Owls forward Aaliyah Edwards told reporters.
Mabrey had just five points before her technical foul but the competitive tension between both teams ignited something in her.
Four technical fouls later, Mabrey knocks down a step back three-pointer to hit her first game-winner of the season.
The Lunar Owls defeated the Vinyl, 68-57 as Mabrey finished the game with 31 points and nine rebounds but it was a full team win. Edwards finished the game with her fourth double-double of the season scoring 13 points and grabbing 18 rebounds.
Williams and Mabrey are both known to be competitive players and at the end of the day, both love the game of basketball. Williams referred to Mabrey as her “dawg” as she told Unrivaled sideline reporter Ros Gold-Onwude that they “do this all the time” and that this is a regular thing between the two of them.
“Man, I was telling them, that’s some great bump right there. You want to be in those type of battles early on, so then you can feel it, you can see what you need to do, how you can adjust. I was telling them, ‘we got to play these girls again, right?’ So you go, you look at the film, you make the adjustment, but it’s so early in the season…We got to play everybody. So these games, like I said, with this type of energy, well, I was loving it,” Williams told reporters.
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Vinyl head coach Teresa Weatherspoon won’t let their team identity change after their loss. Vinyl BC will regroup and prepare to face the Phantom BC next weekend.
“Just kind of let things get out of hand there early. Our conversation in the locker room, just a second ago, with this incredible leader right here, just kind of just poured it out, [I] said, the moment you allow that type of momentum to get started, it’s kind of hard to stop that kind of momentum. And we allowed it from the very beginning,” Weatherspoon told reporters postgame. “What we need to do, go back, look at film, make our adjustments, and we move from there. We don’t allow it to change our thought process of who we are and what we come here to accomplish.”
Diggins returns
After missing the Lunar Owls first three games of the season guard Skylar Diggins made her return.
Although she was on a minutes restriction, she still impacted the Lunar Owls enough with her veteran leadership to help guide them to victory.
“I’m really happy and proud of the unit, especially Sky. People don’t know what she had to come back from and how hard she had to fight to even play tonight. And this is months on end of her going through rehab and everything else. So it was great to have her out there,” Sackman said.
Diggins only played 14.5 minutes but she finished with nine points and three assists. Diggins seemed to still make some big plays especially towards the end of the game when they needed it most.
“She’s a pro. I mean, even before she touches a court, you can see in her habits and her routine and just how she approaches the day. How well she prepares, it’s amazing to see, to witness and be around. And then once she touches that court, she does a great job just leading the team, by example and also by her voice. She had two tough buckets, tough lays at the end of the game. [She] got me going as well with our pick and roll, our two-man game. Sky means a lot to not only me, but the whole team, and she’s a great leader for us, and going off what coach said, [I’m] super proud of how far she’s come to show out and do what she did today.” Edwards said.
‘Philly is Unrivaled’, the first tour stop for the league is only 10 days away but in the meantime Unrivaled returns next weekend for more competitive action.
Here is this weekend’s schedule (all times in ET). All games will be streaming on truTV and HBO Max. Friday’s games will also show on TNT.
Friday January 23
Mist BC vs Rose BC (7:30 p.m.)
Phantom BC vs Vinyl BC (8:45 p.m.)
Saturday January 24
Lunar Owls BC vs Breeze BC (7:30 p.m.)
Hive BC vs Laces BC (8:45 p.m.)
Sunday January 25
Vinyl BC vs Mist BC (1:00 p.m.)
Phantom BC vs Rose BC (2:15 p.m.)
Monday January 19
Lunar Owls BC vs Hive BC (7:30 p.m.)
Laces BC vs Breeze BC (8:45 p.m.)
