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Paige Bueckers’ standout performance in Unrivaled Friday night wasn’t the only major takeaway from the Philadelphia festivities.
Bueckers met the media after Breeze BC dropped a heartbreaker against Phantom BC, 71-68, but she had a moment that was simply bigger than just basketball.
Paige Bueckers on playing in a sold-out Xfinity Mobile Arena for Unrivaled:
“The women before us paved the way, and now we’re finally getting the recognition, the media coverage, the accessibility on TV. We’re playing in an NBA arena and sold out 21,000.” pic.twitter.com/A7dIHeY4gi
— haus hoops | wbb (@haushoops) January 31, 2026
Bueckers reflected on what it was like playing in an NBA arena, more specifically, one where the attendance was a staggering 21,490 (a women’s basketball record, WNBA included).
“The women before us paved the way, and now we’re finally getting the recognition, the media coverage, the accessibility on TV,” Bueckers said. “We’re playing in an NBA arena and sold out 21,000.”
Bueckers’ realization demonstrates further that while women’s basketball may have room to continue growing, it is clearly making strides that just a few years ago didn’t seem attainable.
Bueckers didn’t just play in front of anyone; she played in front of stars. One “X” user, Jason Dumas, smartly pointed this out, making it an even bigger event.
Notable names included Jalyx Hunt, Dawn Staley, Jason Kelce, Kylie Kelce, Kyle Lowry, and Sabrina Ionescu, to name a few. There were other names throughout the audience in the Xfinity Mobile Center just to catch a glimpse of the starpower.
Bueckers told HNG News, via The Associated Press, how much Friday night’s event could serve as a springboard to see more women’s basketball, even the potential addition of a WNBA team.
“To see the turnout, to see the sold-out arena, to just see the love that they have for women’s sports, it means a lot for the future too in terms of getting a WNBA team,” Bueckers said. “It’s really cool just for the game to continue to expand and for us to see that turnaround and for us to see that support everywhere we go.”
Bueckers’ Breeze teammate, Cameron Brink, agreed.
“I would love to see Unrivaled tour more often,” Brink said. “We saw that this is a city that wants to cheer on women’s basketball.”
Even though it was only a one-night event, it appears it did what it was supposed to do: bring together new women’s basketball fans, provide a unique and fast-paced way to enjoy the sport in a nontraditional sense, and bring out celebrities from all different professions for a fun Friday night in a city known for sports.
Whether it’s the last time it will happen remains to be seen. But it could be the start of something big.
READ MORE: Wings Star Paige Bueckers Answers Burning Question UConn WBB Fans Have This Season
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