Unrivaled: Will Phantom or Mist get their first win on Friday night?

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After an outstanding opening week, where some clubs looked like well-oiled machines and others struggled to find a higher gear, Unrivaled’s second week of action arrives on Friday, Jan. 24 with a pair of anticipated matchups; two clubs seek to advance to to 3-0 and two others hope for a first win.

The latter two clubs, Phantom and Mist, meet at 7:15 p.m. ET, followed by Laces and Vinyl facing off in a battle of undefeateds at 8:15 p.m. ET. Both games will be broadcast on TNT.

0-3 looms as Phantom meet Mist

Expect desperation to define this game, as neither Phantom nor Mist will want to be stuck with an 0-3 start. While the season presents plenty of time to recover from early stumbles, narratives of struggle can be sticky, and that’s something no player or club wishes to be saddled with.

Thus far, these two clubs have been the league’s lowest-scoring teams, with Phantom hovering below 60 points per game and Mist just inching above that mark; the other four clubs all are averaging more than 70 points scored per contest.

As Josh Felton pointed out in Swish Appeal’s first edition of Unrivaled power rankings, Mist has been particularly bedeviled by cold shooting. After shooting 44.8 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from 3 in their first loss, Mist sunk to 31.6 percent from the field and 13.3 from 3 in their second L. So far, Breanna Stewart and DiJonai Carrington both have failed to find the net from behind the arc, with only a Jewell Loyd 3-point heater in the opener saving Mist from an even worse shooting fate. Although Phantom shot a decent 36 percent from 3 in their first contest, they struggled from 2-point range, shooting 32.7 percent overall. In their second game, the club shot respectably, converting almost 52 percent of all their attempts, only for turnovers to deflate their offensive effectiveness.

Shooting variance simply could be the deciding factor in this game. However, while the Ghost Gang might hope for a Sabrina Ionescu explosion and the Misties will pray Breanna Stewart escapes her rut, it could be the other end of the floor that determines which club enters the win column.

Both clubs have struggled to sustain consistent lack of defensive attentiveness, which is emerging as a necessity for Unrivaled success. The side that can tap into a defensive identity could begin to right their season. For Phantom, Natasha Cloud needs to set the tone, with Satou Sabally following her lead and flying around on that end. For Mist, DiJonai Carrington can be the tone setter, with Aaliyah Edwards, who deserves more than the four minutes she saw last game, offering an extra dose of defensive will and want.

Can Vinyl cause Laces to record scratch?

Laces look like the class of Unrivaled, winning both of their games without much fuss.

The team is locked in on both ends. Defensively, they allow a league-low 45.5 points per game, doing so, in part, by controlling the defensive glass, with a league-best 36 defensive boards per game, and, as Josh noted, by committing the fewest fouls per game. Offensively, they share the ball, leading the league in assists by effectively leveraging the space created by Kayla McBride’s 3-point shooting threat—she’s made nine 3s in two games—to find easy, open scores at the basket.

Vinyl has the potential to disrupt Laces’ beautiful basketball. Both Arike Ogunbowale and Rhyne Howard are offensive dynamos who can get on hot streaks that incinerate an opponent’s well-planned strategy. And even if Ogunbowale or Howard do not ignite, Vinyl has enough versatile talent to match Laces. Dearica Hamby, in particular, deserves more attention for how impactful she’s been to start the season, averaging 19.5 points, nine rebounds, four assists, 1.5 steals and a block per game. In short, she been everywhere.

This should be a fun one! Although head coach Teresa Weatherspoon certainly will not allow her team to slack off on the defensive end, Vinyl will probably be pretty comfortable if this game becomes a higher-scoring affair. In contrast, Laces would likely have the edge in a more defensive-focused battle.