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As Unrivaled enters the second half of the 2026 season, clubs are beginning to establish themselves.
On Sunday night, Breeze beat Rose, 81-56, thanks to a dominant game from Paige Bueckers. Both teams entered this game at 4-4, but with the victory, Breeze jumps ahead of in the standings, while furthering their case as a dark horse to win it all this year.
Lunar Owls just came off a big win over Rose, but Phantom made sure a winning streak wouldn’t begin as they took care of business in the second half to pull away, 59-49.
Kelsey Plum and Aliyah Boston are a dynamic duo
It took a total effort for Phantom to beat Lunar Owls, but Kelsey Plum is, unequivocally, the team’s leader.
She ended the game with 18 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Plum’s ability to get everyone involved and still get her own offense going is why Phantom is now 6-3 on the year in Unrivaled.
While Plum may lead, it’s Aliyah Boston that delivers. She had an equally impressive game, finishing with 18 points and 11 rebounds to be named Player of the Game. Natasha Cloud was the only other Phantom player who ended the contest in double figures, scoring 10 points.
Marina Mabrey’s encore after her 47-point performance in Philadelphia was respectable. Mabrey scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Lunar Owls. Skylar Diggins also had 18 points in the loss. Despite the defeat, Lunar Owls held their own. This contest was a two-point game at the half, and Phantom led 48-47 entering the fourth quarter. However, Lunar Owls’ offense died in the final period, scoring just two points.
Plum and Boston exchanged baskets throughout the fourth, and Lunar Owls were unable to stop them.
Paige Bueckers is unstoppable
There is no containing Paige Bueckers. Each opponent just tries to disrupt her as much as possible, hoping she has an off night. Against Rose, everything was on.
Bueckers scored 32 points on 14-for-22 shooting. Her passing was equally as effective, ending the game with 11 assists. Her play ensured Breeze remained in control the entire night. She was aggressive from the jump and immediately got her other two stars, Dominque Malonga and Rickea Jackson, involved.
Jackson had 20 points in the win, and Malonga scored 18. Bueckers’ dominance didn’t go unnoticed as she was named the Player of the Game.
Rose didn’t have the offensive firepower to keep up with Breeze’s young core. Shakira Austin led the team with 21 points, but everyone else struggled from the field. Kahleah Copper had 15 points, but did so on 5-for-15 shooting. Chelsea Gray ended the game with 11 points on 5-for-17 shooting.
As a team, Rose went 3-for-13 from 3-point range. It’s hard to win games when you shoot that poorly, get outrebounded and have just nine total assists to go along with six turnovers. Rose started the season 3-0, but have gone 1-5 since. If they can’t turn things around soon, they might fall out of the playoff race, and their title defense will end with a whimper.
