Laces BC and Lunar Owls BC, the two top teams in Unrivaled, battled on Saturday at Wayfair Arena in Miami, Florida. Lunar Owls defeated Laces, 87-63, and became the first club to punch a ticket to the playoffs.
Allisha Gray led the Lunar Owls with 26 points and six rebounds on 9-for-15 shooting. Skylar Diggins-Smith had 25 points and five assists, while Napheesa Collier contributed 16 points and nine rebounds. Off the bench, Courtney Williams finished with 11 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, while Shakira Austin added 10 points.
For injury-plagued Laces, Kayla McBride had 18 points and seven rebounds on 6-for-11 shooting. Natisha Hiedeman had 11 points, while Ariel Atkins added 10 off the bench. The team only had four players available on Saturday.
Lunar Owls (9-1) are on the second night of a back-to-back and avenged their first loss this season. They lost 72-63 against the Angel Reese-led Rose BC. On the flip side, Laces dropped to 5-4 and are now tied with the streaking Rose at the No. 2 spot.
Stefanie Dolson, McBride and Hiedeman started the game for Laces, while Lunar Owls started its usual trio of Collier, Gray and Diggins-Smith.
Lunar Owls BC vs. Laces BC player stats and box score
Laces BC player stats and box score
Lunar Owls BC player stats and box score
Lunar Owls BC vs. Laces BC game summary
At the end of the high-scoring first quarter, Lunar Owls had a 30-27 lead over the Laces BC. Allisha Gray is off to a hot start with 16 points and 7-for-9 shooting. On the other end, Natisha Hiedeman led Laces with 11 points.
Lunar Owls increased its lead in the second quarter to 15 heading into the break, 57-42. Gray had 20 points, while Napheesa Collier and Skylar Diggins-Smith added 13 apiece. Lunar Owls shot 60.0% in the first half.
Lunar Owls established the game's winning score at 87 after scoring 76 points at the end of the third quarter. They had increased their lead to 23.
In the untimed fourth quarter, Lunar Owls were able to maintain its lead. Courtney Williams hit the game-winning basket — her first this season.