Sights and sounds from opening weekend of Unrivaled’s inaugural season

League founders, Lunar Owls BC forward Napheesa Collier and Mist BC forward Breanna Stewart took the stage with big smiles on their faces to go up against one another in the first ever Unrivaled tip-off.

The referee blew his whistle and the competitiveness from the players spread through the air immediately. The Mist won the tip to control the start of the game as Stewart drove left passed Collier pulling up for a short-range jumper against Lunar Owls guard Allisha Gray.

Unrivaled president Alex Bazzell and commissioner Micky Lawler knew that this day was going to be special when they walked into their offices in the morning and received a large bouquet of flowers from a youth basketball club.

“The flower vase was filled with little basketballs. The flowers were in colors of our brand, and there was a note that I’ll read to you, because it says it all,” Lawler told reporters. “‘We see you. We are inspired by you. Your innovation and creativity in building this new league are truly groundbreaking, and the impact it has on women’s basketball and women’s sports as a whole is monumental. You are setting a powerful example, paving the way for future generations and redefining what is possible.’ It goes on, but then I’ll start crying from emotion. So that is our why.”

Unrivaled’s 3-on-3 style of play is exhilarating as the possessions move rapidly up and down the court so fast that if you blink you may miss something.

Wayfair Arena creates an intimate environment where fans feel more involved with the action. From anywhere inside the arena you can hear the players voices projecting from the court.

“The atmosphere is really good. It felt like the fans were right there on the court,” Rose BC guard Chelsea Gray told reporters. “Sometimes I didn’t know if there were more fans for this team or that team. So I really like that atmosphere and everybody just wanting to see good basketball.”

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Opening Day

Opening night for Unrivaled was nothing short of exciting and entertaining. It kicked off with a fanfest outside the main entrance doors as fans flooded in to participate in contests and prepared to see some of their favorite players.

Once fans were allowed into the arena for the first time, their eyes glowed as they looked up and down and took in their surroundings of the new arena. They gradually took their seats as an array of WNBA jerseys created a rainbow washed over the entire arena.

The first game, featuring the Lunar Owls BC and the Mist BC, had people glued to their seats until the very end when Lunar Owls BC guard Skylar Diggins-Smith pulled up at the 3-point line to make the winning shot. The crowd gasped in awe and then broke out in applause.

The Owls celebrated their 84-80 victory by running across the floor and then to center court to gather in a huddle.

“Obviously there’s a lot of fanfare around everything, but once the ball goes up, we’re just playing basketball,” Collier told reporters. “Obviously, it feels good to get a win and to do that with my team. And again, I think the fourth quarter is just so exciting no matter what, because you end on a game winner every single game. And so that adrenaline was really fun. I think it was everything we were hoping for.”

Despite their loss, Mist guard Jewell Loyd was unstoppable, finishing the game with 34 points.

“Honestly, I’m just getting back to to me,” Loyd told reporters. “I’m getting back to a peace and getting back to finding a joy in basketball. And so that was the biggest thing on my mind. Just go play hard. That’s that’s what we want to do.”

The second game featuring the Vinyl BC and Rose BC also did not disappoint as the two teams battled for four quarters. The game ended with a savvy pass made by Vinyl guard Arike Ogunbowale around Rose forward Azura Stevens to Vinyl forward Dearica Hamby for a layup.

The stars are out

With the heightened attention around this brand new league it was expected that some celebrities would be making appearances.

Retired U.S. women’s soccer player and an Unrivaled investor, Alex Morgan was propped courtside to get in on all the action. NBA legend Steve Nash was also in attendance on opening night as he smiled and waved when they flashed him on the video board.

A designated section in the arena was reserved for family, friends and players adding to the celebrity appearances.

Some people among those celebrites were Seattle Storm forward Nneka Ogwumike and head coach Noelle Quinn, Dallas Wings vice president of basketball operations Jasmine Thomas and Indiana Fever forward Nalyssa Smith. The players and coaches whether they were in Unrivaled or not chatted and reunited with old friends.

Other stars who made appearances throughout the weekend are NBA star Jimmy Butler, U.S. soccer stars Tobin Heath and Kelley O’Hara, Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon and TikTok star Gabby Gonzales.

Day 2

Fans once again gathered outside the arena to enjoy the fan festivities as the sun shined bright and the breeze poured through the Florida air.

The stage was set for another great day for women’s basketball.

The first game featured the Laces BC and the Phantom BC. The Laces seemed more than ready to play, as if they have played together before.

“He [Laces Head Coach Andrew Wade] had a graphic up yesterday, and there’s like 1,500 something games between the people that are here that have been playing in the WNBA, and out of the group in ours, we have like, 350 more just in our group than anybody else,” Kayla McBride told reporters. “So I think it’s testament to that too. I think a lot of the women that I get to go to work with every day have been in so many different environments, so many different experiences, whether it’s WNBA, overseas, national team, like anywhere, and so when you have that type of locker room in this environment, it becomes easier.

“It’s easier to adjust, because everybody’s had to at some point in their career. … So I think for us, from Day 1, we’re like, ‘Listen we’re going to compete at a high level. We’re going to enjoy playing with each other and just go out there hooping and try to win every possession,’ because we’ve done it our whole careers.”

Despite the defeat, Phantom guard Sabrina Ionescu has felt nothing but gratitude that she gets to be a part of something so special.

“Being able to have your family here and being able to kind of have access to whatever you want, that’s something obviously really different,” Ionescu told reporters. “And like I said, I think being able to be teammates with so many new people, train with so many of your teammates, it’s just such a different feel, obviously something that’s never been done before. So I think that part’s exciting as well. … I’m just excited to be here, competing, working on my game and enjoying the atmosphere. I thought it was amazing.”

The second game was between the Lunar Owls BC and the Rose BC. Both clubs played back-to-back days which can take a toll on the body.

“Back-to-backs are hard in general, even in the W but here especially, just because of that fast pace, the different intensity that comes with 3-on-3. So, you just gotta lock in,” Rose forward Azura Stevens told reporters. “As a pro, we’ve all done back-to-backs before, so we know how to take care of our bodies and do what we need to do to be able to perform the next day. But it’s definitely a little more tiring on a back-to-back, especially with the style of play.”

Skylar Diggins-Smith hit the game-winning shot for a second game in a row, as the crowd once again electrified the arena.

“I think the format really stood out last night when she knocked that down,” Lunar Owls head coach DJ Sackmann told reporters. “The fourth quarter is so exciting. So I personally love the format. The energy in the building was great.”

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The Finale

Opening weekend ended the same way it started: with a bang.

The first game featuring the Vinyl BC and the Phantom BC was a battle for both teams, as they traded baskets back and forth. The Vinyl BC eventually started to pull away in a contest that was extremely physical.

The Phantom BC seemed to be expressing their frustration in the referees throughout the game as Katie Lou Samuelson shouted from the bench, “Call the game the same way you do in the league!” to the refs.

The Vinyl defeated the Phantom, 84-71.

“I think in general, we came out and competed way harder from our first game,” Phantom BC head coach Adam Harrington told reporters. “We wanted to be more physical, because we know it’s a super physical game. It’s unfortunate. We look at the box score, and the second quarter kind of got away from us. And I think the fouls were six to one that quarter. … They shot 13 free throws to our five, they made 10, to our four. That’s a big chunk of points, and you think of how close the game could have been.

“So unfortunate, but I think we’re all navigating, it’s all new. They’re reffing 3-on-3 in the full court for the first time, seeing how intense and fast paced it is. So it’s an adjustment for us. Unfortunately, we were on the other end of it tonight.”

The Mist BC got off to a slow start against the Laces BC in the second game of the night. Various Mist players struggled from the floor with guard Dijonai Carrington going 1-for-10 from the floor, guard Courtney Vandersloot shooting 2-for-11 from the floor and forward Rickea Jackson making just 3-of-10 shot attempts.

The Laces defeated the Mist, 63-43.

There is no doubt that Unrivaled’s opening weekend for their inaugural season showcased the wide range of talent in women’s basketball.

“We worked really hard. I mean, the team worked really hard, not me, really to make this an entertaining product,” Collier said. “We have the best players in the world, and we want to do it justice. We want to expose everyone’s talents and put those on display, and to have a format where every game is going to be engaging.”

Some even noted that Unrivaled has now set a standard that the WNBA will feel pressured to meet with the resources that are available to these athletes.

“They’ve literally provided everything and anything we could need, which is really awesome just to have all those tools to be able to recover in a short amount of time,” Stevens said. “The trainers here have been really great, taking attention to each player and what we all need, and just being all hands on deck. We’ve got saunas, cold tubs, hot tubs, we’ve got literally everything we need. So it’s definitely gratitude just for Unrivaled and then providing all of that, given the schedule and the intensity that can come with a back-to-back like this.”

As women’s basketball continues to grow, Unrivaled has taken off and is paving a clear path for female athletes. This weekend is only the beginning.