In one week, Unrivaled will begin to “Crown the One,” as the league’s second-ever 1-on-1 Tournament tips off.
The 16 first-round matchups will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 11, beginning at 7 p.m. ET (truTV). The second round and quarterfinals will take place on Friday, Feb. 13 starting a 7:30 p.m. ET (TNT/truTV). The tournament then concludes on Saturday, Feb. 14 with the semifinals and final, with the action beginning at 6 p.m. ET (TNT/truTV).
The game format will be the same as last year. Games end
when one player reaches the winning score of 11 points. If the 10-minute running clock expires before a player reaches 11 points, the player in the lead advances. Games again will have a seven-second shot clock. The final will be a best-of-three series, with each game having a winning score of seven points.
Last year, Napheesa Collier took the crown. While Aaliyah Edwards prevailed in the first game of the best-of-three final series, Collier won the next two to win the $200,000 prize.
This year, the champion again will receive $200,000, with $50,000 going to the runner up and $25,000 to each semifinalist.
Before the competitive festivities can begin, however, the bracket must be established—and fans can have their say.
The tournament’s 32 participants have been divided into four eight-player pods. Fans can submit their rankings for each pod, with that data helping to determine the final bracket.
The chance to submit player rankings ends on Feb. 4 at midnight.
The four positional pods are:
- Pod A: Courtney Williams (Vinyl), Jordin Canada (Laces), Kelsey Mitchell (Hive), Kelsey Plum (Phantom), Natisha Hiedeman (Hive), Rachel Banham (Lunar Owls), Skylar Diggins (Lunar Owls), Veronica Burton (Mist)
- Pod B: Arike Ogunbowale (Mist), Brittney Sykes (Laces), Chelsea Gray (Rose), Jackie Young (Laces), Kate Martin (Breeze), Natasha Cloud (Phantom), Paige Bueckers (Breeze), Tiffany Hayes (Phantom)
- Pod C: Allisha Gray (Mist), Kahleah Copper (Rose), Marina Mabrey (Lunar Owls), Rae Burrell (Vinyl), Rhyne Howard (Vinyl), Rickea Jackson (Breeze), Saniya Rivers (Hive), Sonia Citron (Hive)
- Pod D: Aaliyah Edwards (Lunar Owls), Aliyah Boston (Phantom), Alyssa Thomas (Laces), Li Yueru (Mist), Breanna Stewart (Mist), Dearica Hamby (Vinyl), Dominque Malonga (Breeze), Shakira Austin (Rose)
The pods, certainly, present the possibility for some fun matchups.
From Pod A, a Stud Budz showdown stands out as a can’t-miss event, while a Kelsey vs. Kelsey contest between Mitchell and Plum would be crazy. Pod B is stacked, yet it won’t be surprising when Paige is the No. 1 seed—and proves she was deserving of it.
From Pod C, there is the potential for besties to do battle with Allisha and Rhyne. The magic of Lisa Leslie, however, could carry Sweet Baby Rae further than expected. While a Dom dunk would be the highlight of Pod D, she might not need a slam to run through the bracket, although, after last year’s first-round loss, Stewie surely will be out for revenge. An AB-AT rumble might be the most-intense (theoretical) matchup of them all.
