After the first week of Unrivaled action, three teams stand undefeated, while three remain winless. On Monday night, Vinyl and Laces joined Lunar Owls at 2-0, as Phantom and Mist fell to 0-2 with Rose. Vinyl won 84-71 over Phantom before Laces dominated Mist, 63-43.
Is a league hierarchy already taking shape? Or, will much change over the regular season’s six remaining weeks? We’ll find out. For now, here’s how Vinyl and Laces earned their dubs on Monday night:
Vinyl hit right notes against Phantom
Phantom introduced a new starting lineup, with Natasha Cloud joining Sabrina Ionescu and Satou Sabally as part of the club’s first three. After a sloppy start, Phantom found their footing, benefitting from better shooting from Ionescu and Sabally. Reserves Natisha Hiedeman and Katie Lou Samuelson also offered some timely shotmaking, with Hiedeman, making her Unrivaled debut, hitting a triple at the end of the first to give Phantom a 20-19 advantage after the first seven minutes.
However, by the middle of the second, Vinyl had edged ahead, with the club’s starting trio of Arike Ogunbowale, Rhyne Howard and Dearica Hamby doing damage in their second stint, giving Vinyl an 11-point, 49-38, lead at the half.
Throughout the second half, every time Phantom hit a shot that…
