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Alexa Philippou
Multiple Authors
NEW YORK — The 3-on-3 Unrivaled league will crown its second champion Wednesday night when No. 1 seed Phantom BC and No. 2 seed Mist face off at Miami’s Sephora Arena.
Phantom knocked off No. 6 Vinyl 83-75 behind Kelsey Plum’s 31 points, and Mist mounted a 16-point comeback over fifth-seeded Breeze 73-69 in a pair of semifinal games at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.
The semifinal games were played in front of a sellout crowd of 18,231 after the league announced the venue change on Feb. 13. And the players delivered two close, entertaining games, with Arike Ogunbowale sealing Mist’s victory with a winning 3-pointer.
“Everyone was putting on a show,” Plum said, “and that’s what you want for the fans.”
The night also marked a homecoming for Unrivaled co-founder Breanna Stewart, who plays for the New York Liberty. Fellow co-founder Napheesa Collier was in attendance, as were other league stars and celebrities that included Ashton Kutcher, Hilary Knight and Jason Sudeikis.
“This is my home,” said Stewart, whose 23 points led the Mist. “Once I knew [the semifinals in Brooklyn] was happening, I was like, ‘My team has to be here. I want to be playing in this game.'”
Phantom was the top seed in the postseason, but the club made the final under adverse circumstances. On Sunday, star center Aliyah Boston, the league’s defensive player of the year, was ruled out for the rest of the playoffs because of a lower extremity injury. Aziaha James and Makayla Timpson were assigned to the club for the rest of the postseason.
Phantom have also been without forward Satou Sabally all season because of an injury she suffered during the WNBA Finals, as well as guard Dana Evans for all but one game.
Mist faced a challenge of their own Monday night, as a poor start saw them down 26-10 at the end of the first quarter. But Stewart sparked a turnaround to ensure her squad wouldn’t lose on her home court.
Both Phantom and Mist missed the playoffs in 2025. Phantom, now riding a nine-game win streak, hold a 2-0 series edge this season over Mist.
Defending champion Rose was upset by Breeze in the quarterfinals Saturday. Their point guard Chelsea Gray was crowed MVP earlier Monday and was recognized on the court before the games.
After a successful tour stop in New York — the second of the season after setting an attendance record at Philadelphia’s Xfinity Mobile Arena in January — the league will return to its home base in Miami, where players will compete for a $600,000 prize pool.
Stewart said the league considered hosting the championship game at Barclays as well before deciding to keep it as scheduled at their 1,000-seat home venue.
“There’s a [value] to going and winning a championship in the place that you built,” she said. “So while it is a smaller arena and venue, that’s where the banner is raised, that’s where the Rose has it, and now we’re going to fight for that championship in the place that we’ve been working all season long.”
