The Lunar Owls BC remained undefeated in Unrivaled as it won against the Phantom BC 94-76 in the first game of Friday's two-game slate at Wayfair Arena in Miami, Florida.
Allisha Gray led the Lunar Owls with 23 points and six rebounds on 7-for-12 shooting (5-for-8 on 3-pointers). Unrivaled co-founder Napheesa Collier added 20 points, six rebounds and three assists on 8-for-14 shooting, while Sylar Diggins-Smith finished with 18 points and seven assists.
The Lunar Owls also had significant contributions from its bench. Courtney Williams had 19 points, four rebounds and five assists, while Shakira Austin chipped in 14 points.
For Phantom, Brittney Griner had an efficient game. She finished with 23 points and five rebounds on 11-fo-14 shooting. Satou Sabally had 17 points and seven boards, while Sabrina Ionescu added 13 points. Natasha Cloud had 13 points and eight assists off the bench.
The Lunar Owls (7-0) have been the best team in the inaugural season of the 3-on-3 women's professional basketball league. On the other hand, Phantom dropped to the bottom of the league with a 2-5 record.
Collier has also been dominating the first three weeks of Unrivaled, leading the league in points (29.3) and rebounds (11.8) coming into Friday's matchup.
These teams last met on Jan. 25, when the Lunar Owls cruised to an 82-58 win over Phantom. Collier scored 37 points in that game, while Satou Sabally led Phantom with 19 points.
Lunar Owls started its usual trio of Collier, Gray and Diggins-Smith. For Phantom, Sabally, Ionescu and Griner started the game. Both teams were missing a player in their lineup. Marina Mabrey remains sidelined for Phantom, while Cameron Brink is inactive, as she is scheduled to debut for Lunar Owls next season.
Phantom BC vs. Lunar Owls BC player stats and box score
Phantom BC player stats and box score
Lunar Owls BC player stats and box score
Phantom BC vs. Lunar Owls BC game summary
Phantom BC's Brittney Griner started the game by scoring her team's first nine points (4-for-5 shooting). But at the end of the first seven minutes, Lunar Owls BC led Phantom 32-26.
At halftime, Lunar Owls still led Phantom, 53-52. Courtney Williams had 14 points off the bench. Allisha Gray and Sylar Diggins-Smith chipped in 12 and 10 points, respectively. For Phantom, Griner had 15 points and four rebounds on 7-for-9 shooting. Phantom shot an efficient 68.8% at the half.
After a high-scoring back-and-forth first half, Lunar Owls had increased its lead to 17 behind a 13-0 run. With a little over two minutes left in the crucial third quarter, the Lunar Owls were on top 77-60.
They held to the lead coming into the untimed final quarter, 83-68. The final score was established at 94, and Napheesa Collier scored the game-winning basket.