Here’s what you need to know

Rising WNBA star Angel Reese became the first player in Unrivaled to be ejected from a game Saturday after receiving two straight technical fouls, following a puzzling sequence.

Reese, a starter for the Rose, clapped her hands toward Laces guard Tiffany Hayes after a defensive stop in the second quarter. Reese gestured her left hand toward Hayes’ direction at least three times. But the referee assumed the gestures were towards him, so he issued the first technical foul.

Reese quickly received a second technical foul for excessively arguing the first tech as players, coaches and referees tried to sort out the sequence.

Reese posted a series of social media posts after the ejection, including “free me” and “clickbait. everything i do keep going viral.” She scored six points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Rose before her early exit. 

Rose coach Nola Henry believes the experience can be a learning moment for Reese.

“Everything happened pretty quickly. The players are super competitive, and at times that competitiveness makes them become a little bit emotional,” Henry said.

“While I understood her frustration completely, she’ll grow from that in terms of keeping her composure because she had 15 rebounds. Who’s to say she wouldn’t have been able to do that in the second half and then end up having 25 to 30 rebounds?”

Henry said she sought clarity from the referee on what Reese said, leading to the ejection.

“Not sure what it was that made him frustrated. I think there was a little bit of confusion just in the whole interaction altogether. So, just wanted clarity around what was said, and it wasn’t much.”

Henry said she would coach up her young star after the game.

“Still a super young player, so she’s growing and learning,” Henry said of Reese.

Reese is one of the most popular figures in women’s basketball after winning a national championship at LSU in 2023.

She was drafted by the Chicago Sky with the seventh pick in the first round of the 2024 WNBA draft, and was the WNBA’s leading rebounder in her rookie season last year.

Reese’s popularity has entered another stratosphere off the court. She appeared on the cover of Vogue Magazine last month. The Angel Reese Special at McDonald’s was also announced this week.

On the court, Reese’s 15 rebounds helped the Rose win their second Unrivaled game, 83-69 over the Laces.

Chelsea Gray scored the game-winning 3-pointer to finish with 28 points, while Azurá Stevens had 23 points and eight rebounds on her 29th birthday. Unrivaled fans serenated Stevens by singing “Happy Birthday” during her postgame interview on the court.

“We just stuck together, and pulled the win out,” Stevens said.

The Laces dropped their second straight game after a 4-0 start to the season. Hayes did not finish the game due to a concussion, while center Alyssa Thomas missed her third game due to a right leg injury. Kayla McBride had 20 points, while Jackie Young had 16 points for the Laces.

Breanna Stewart had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Aaliyah Edwards scored the game-winning 2-pointer, and the Mist won 77-67 in the first game on Saturday night.

Four Mist players scored in double figures to win their first Unrivaled game after a 0-4 start. They overcame a monster night by the Vinyl’s Dearica Hamby, who scored 35 points with 15 rebounds in the loss.

Week 3 of Unrivaled ends Monday night, when Sabrina Ionescu and the Phantom face the Mist at 7:30 p.m. ET, followed by the Vinyl and Napheesa Collier’s Lunar Owls.

Unrivaled highlights

Unrivaled final score: Rose 83, Laces 69

Chelsea Gray scored 28 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer, and the Rose won their second game of the Unrivaled season with an 83-69 win over the Laces on Saturday night.

Azurá Stevens had 23 points and eight rebounds on her 29th birthday, as fans in Unrivaled’s arena serenated her by singing “Happy Birthday” during her postgame interview on the court.

“We just stuck together, and pulled the win out,” Stevens said.

Kahleah Copper added 23 points, while Angel Reese had six points and 15 rebounds before being ejected after two technical fouls in the second quarter.

Kayla McBride had 20 points, while Jackie Young had 16 points for the Laces. They’ve lost two straight games after starting 4-0. Tiffany Hayes had 14 points, but left the game early due to a concussion. The Laces also played without Alyssa Thomas, who missed her third game due to a right leg injury.

Unrivaled final score: Mist 77, Vinyl 67

Breanna Stewart and the Mist are winless no more.

Stewart had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Aaliyah Edwards scored the game-winning 2-pointer, and the Mist won 77-67 in the first game on Saturday night.

Four Mist players scored in double figures to overcome a monster night by the Vinyl’s Dearica Hamby, who scored 35 points with 15 rebounds.

Edwards had 16 points, Jewell Loyd added 15 points and Rickea Jackson had 13 points for the Mist, who lost their first four Unrivaled games. The Mist shot 58% from the field, and 50% from 3-point range in the win.

“When you’re 0-4 it’s tough. But we continue to grind, and here we are,” Stewart said in a postgame interview on the court after the game.

The Vinyl, which won its first two Unrivaled games in Week 1, is riding a three-game losing streak.

Unrivaled score: Vinyl 65, Mist 64 after third quarter

Target winning score: 76

We’ve got a back-and-forth contest between the Vinyl and the Mist, heading into the fourth quarter with a target winning score of 76 points.

Dearica Hamby has 33 points and 15 rebounds for the Vinyl, while Breanna Stewart leads four Mist players in double figures with 18 points.

Unrivaled halftime score: Mist 42, Vinyl 39 after second quarter

Dearica Hamby has 21 points in the first half for the Vinyl, but the Mist lead 42-39 at halftime.

The Mist led by as many as 10 points in the second quarter, before Hamby singlehandedly helped the Vinyl close the gap in the second quarter.

Breanna Stewart has 12 points, and Rickea Jackson added 11 points for the Mist – still looking for its first Unrivaled win.

Rhyne Howard appeared to suffer an injury, but stayed in the game to finish the quarter for the Vinyl.

Unrivaled score: Mist 22, Vinyl 21 after first quarter

Breanna Stewart leads all scorers with 10 points, and the Mist lead 22-21 after the first quarter.

Dearica Hamby leads the Vinyl with nine points.

How to watch Unrivaled games on TV Saturday night?

Unrivaled is available on cable television on TruTV in the United States, and TSN+ in Canada.

How to live stream Unrivaled games on Saturday night?

Unrivaled games are also available to live stream on Max, and internationally on YouTube.

Watch: Unrivaled games on Sling TV

Vinyl (2-2) vs. Mist (0-4) at 6 p.m.

Unrivaled co-founder Breanna Stewart leads the Mist in nearly every statistical category, but the club is the only winless side in the league.

Meanwhile, the Vinyl hopes to get back on track. They won their first two games in Week 1, but dropped both games in Week 2.

Dearica Hamby leads the Vinyl with 19.0 points per game (fifth in Unrivaled), while Rhyne Howard averages 17.5 points (eighth). Jewell Loyd leads the Mist with 17.7 points (seventh), while Stewart has 17.5 points (ninth) and 11.8 rebounds per game (tied for first).

Laces (4-1) vs. Rose (1-4) at 7:30 p.m.

The Laces dropped their first game of the season against the Lunar Owls in a battle of unbeaten teams, while the Rose fell to Sabrina Ionescu and the Phantom on Friday night.

The Laces are led by Kayla McBride (25.6 ppg, second in Unrivaled) and Tiffany Hayes (19.4 ppg, fourth). Kahleah Copper is the leading scorer for Rose (14.8 ppg), while Angel Reese has averaged 11.2 points and 8.0 rebounds.

Both teams faced each other last Monday, with the Laces winning 71-64.

Angel Reese has new McDonald’s deal

McDonald’s announced a collaboration this week with Reese, the second-year WNBA star of the Chicago Sky and one of women’s basketball youngest and most popular players.

Starting Feb. 10, you can order the Angel Reese Special, which includes a BBQ Bacon Quarter Pounder with Cheese topped with a new BBQ sauce, plus French fries and a drink.

WNBA free agency, offseason takes flight

The Unrivaled games come during a blockbuster week where several WNBA players will be on the move next season.

What is Unrivaled?

Unrivaled – the new women’s basketball league started by WNBA stars Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart – will play its inaugural season from January to mid-March.

Six teams with 36 of the best women’s basketball players in the world, including Sabrina Ionescu and Brittney Griner, will compete in the 3-on-3, full court games.

Where is Unrivaled playing games?

Games will be played at Wayfair Arena in Medley, Florida, which is in the Miami metropolitan area, about 7 miles from Miami International Airport.

Unrivaled team names and rosters

Laces: Stefanie Dolson, Tiffany Hayes, Natisha Hiedeman (relief player contract), Kate Martin, Kayla McBride, Alyssa Thomas, Jackie Young.Lunar Owls: Shakira Austin, Napheesa Collier, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Allisha Gray, Courtney Williams, Cameron Brink (IR).Mist: DiJonai Carrington, Aaliyah Edwards, Rickea Jackson, Jewell Loyd, NaLyssa Smith (relief player contract), Breanna Stewart, Courtney Vandersloot.Phantom: Natasha Cloud, Brittney Griner, Sabrina Ionescu, Marina Mabrey, Satou Sabally, Katie Lou Samuelson.Rose: Kahleah Copper, Chelsea Gray, Lexie Hull, Angel Reese, Azura Stevens, Brittney Sykes.Vinyl: Aliyah Boston, Rae Burrell, Jordin Canada, Dearica Hamby, Rhyne Howard, Arike Ogunbowale.

Unrivaled rules to know 

Unrivaled games start with three seven-minute quarters, and games end when the target winning score is reached in the fourth quarter. The target winning score is 11 points higher than the highest team’s score after the third quarter, known as the Elam Ending. Players also take just one free throw after being fouled: A free throw equals two or three points depending on the shooting foul. How long is the Unrivaled court size? It’s is 72 feet long by 49.2 feet wide. NBA and WNBA courts are 94 feet long and 50 feet wide. 

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