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The Unrivaled 1-on-1 Tournament got off to a rollicking start in Miami on Monday night as 16 athletes faced off against one another in pursuit of a $200,000 prize.
No matter how many WNBA games you attend during the regular season, it’s extremely unlikely you’ll find yourself in an intimate, 850-seat venue filled with some of the game’s biggest stars. The core of what makes Unrivaled special is communicated in being physically seated at Wayfair Arena and taking it all in.
Lisa Leslie, who looks as if she just retired yesterday, walking toward her seat. Brittney Griner and her wife Cherelle, with baby Bash strapped to her chest, joining friends toward the back of the stands. Courtney Williams and her dad sitting courtside, critiquing every player before her own match on Tuesday evening. Teresa Weatherspoon shouting encouragement to her athletes on the floor. Aliyah Boston sticking around after her own game to yell at refs (“It’s one-on-one!” was a frequent, frustrated refrain).
These are moments that can’t happen at a another basketball. It’s impossible. But that’s what Unrivaled has managed to pull off spectacularly. There are a lot of new fans to women’s basketball, some of whom have had a lot to say the last few years, but Unrivaled is rewarding for those who really and truly love to see women hoops, no matter what.
The first night’s 1-on-1 pairings were as follows, with winners in bold:
Napheesa Collier vs Katie Lou Samuelson
Shakira Austin vs. Chelsea Gray
Aliyah Boston vs. Kahleah Copper
Lexie Hull vs. Rhyne Howard
Dearica Hamby vs. Skylar Diggins-Smith
Jordin Canada vs. Allisha Gray
Rickea Jackson vs. Jackie Young
Aaliyah Edwards vs. Breanna Stewart
Wayfair Arena has a distinctly Hunger Games-esque aesthetic, with opponents’ photos flashing across two vertical screens, separated by a giant silver chess piece: Queen of the Court. In fact, the only thing that could have made the set up sweeter is if they’d fired a cannon sound as each person fell—because fall they certainly did.
Napheesa Collier, who co-founded the league with Breanna Stewart, walked into Wayfair Arena to plenty of cheers, though they did little to rattle Katie Lou Samuelson, whose young daughter hit the court for her own workout as her mom warmed up. Collier took over the game from the first possession, putting Samuelson away 12-6 within minutes.
Shakira Austin and Chelsea Gray were the second to hit the court, with Austin overpowering a heated Gray in a surprise 12-2 upset. Gray is “a shifty guard,” but as Austin said afterward, “I guess I’m a shifty post.”
With the tone set, Aliyah Boston and Kahleah Copper were next up. Copper hit two shots early in the matchup that Boston answered two minutes in, but Copper ultimately pulled ahead and stayed there, ending the game 11-6. Copper, a Philadelphia native who had returned to Miami from the Super Bowl in New Orleans, said the biggest difference between 3-on-3 and 1-on-1 is that, “There’s no help when you look over your shoulder.” But it turns out she didn’t really need it.
Boston’s Indiana Fever teammate Lexie Hull was up next against Rhyne Howard, who easily shut her down 12-7. Courtney Williams, who will face off against Howard on Tuesday night, was interviewed between sets and point-blank said she’s not concerned. “I don’t care who it is,” Williams insisted to Swish Appeal. “They can be tall, they can be short, they can shoot 3s, they can shoot middies. That $200,000 has got a hold on me.”
Dearica Hamby and Skylar Diggins-Smith battled next, the first 4-seed-vs.-5-seed matchup. Despite the height difference, Diggins-Smith made easy work of Hamby, winning 11-3. After the bout, Diggins-Smith said she essentially played “cat and mouse” with Hamby, something she might not be able to do again against Arike Ogunbowale on Tuesday night.
Jordin Canada and Allisha Gray followed Hamby and Diggins-Smith. The pair’s height difference didn’t appear to slow down Gray, who defeated Canada fairly easily. Rickea Jackson and Jackie Young were next up, and Jackson immediately made it clear she did not come to play lightly. The game briefly paused when Young fell and appeared injured, but she rallied and the two finished things up 11-3 in Jackson’s favor.
Co-founder Breanna Stewart and fellow UConn alum Aliyah Edwards were the final match of the night. Stewart won first possession, though Edwards hit a 3 within seconds and quickly put her on notice. Edwards hit a two-pointer immediately afterward, soon bringing the score up to 5-0, and then just as quickly, 7-0. Stewart grabbed a little bit of breathing room when Edwards missed her next attempt at a 3, but lost possession almost as quickly. Edwards had the score 9-0 before two minutes had passed. She then shut Stewart out completely, 12-0, in a major upset.
And thus concluded the first night of Unrivaled’s 1-on-1 Tournament. And there’s only more to look forward to from here. The second round begins Tuesday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. ET (TruTV).
