Breanna Stewart likely doesn’t care that she secured Mist’s second win of the season from the free throw line. Stewie isn’t worried about drama. She just wants wins.
And last season, wins were hard to come by for Stewart and Mist. Mist started the 2025 Unrivaled season 0-4 before ultimately missing the playoffs.
New and improved Mist is now 2-0 and aiming for a 3-0 start to the season against Phantom on Monday night (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT/truTV).
More often than not, Stewie is going to be great (even if
her 3-point shot is still wayward, as she is 0-for-7 from deep so far). However, with these Misties, she doesn’t have to be great. Because more likely than not, Allisha Gray is going to be great. The former Lunar Owl set her Unrivaled scoring high in Mist’s down-to-the-wire win over Laces, scoring 28 points. That came after a 21-point and nine-rebound effort in the opener.
Mist can also count on Unrivaled newcomer Veronica Burton, who has filled up the box score in both games. Beyond Gray and Burton, Alanna Smith has imported her Defensive Player of the Year form to Unrivaled, Arike Ogunbowale looks healthy and and Li Yueru is filling her role.
In a testament to Mist’s quality of depth, head coach Zack O’Brien shifted his starting lineup for Mist’s second game, inserting Smith and Ogunbowale for Gray and Burton. While he went back to the original trio of Stewart-Gray-Burton to begin the second half, that the coach had the confidence to make the move speaks to Mist’s enviable optionality, as well as their shared commitment to winning.
Phantom, likewise, has to feel better about their second Unrivaled season. Off to a 1-1, this iteration of the Ghost Gang looks much more likely to make the playoffs than finish at the bottom of the standings, as was their fate last season. The arrival of Kelsey Plum is an obvious reason why. KP doused Lunar Owls for 38 points in just her second Unrivaled game. But she didn’t just get buckets, as Plum tallied 11 assists and eight rebounds.
Aliyah Boston also has found her Unrivaled groove, with 39 points, 17 rebounds and eight assists across the first two games. The steady production of that pair is complemented by the change-of-pace play of Tiffany Hayes and Natasha Cloud, both of whom will bring it on defense while putting pressure on the rim on offense.
Phantom, certainly, is capable of sending Mist to their first loss of the season, all while announcing themselves as a legitimate contender. However, the fast-emerging reliability of Mist’s Stewart-Gray-Burton core, plus the potential of deploying Smith to stymie Boston, suggests Mist will find their way to 3-0.
Lunar Owls are dreaming of last season
Lunar Owls, in contrast, wish they could turn back the clock.
The standard bearers for Unrivaled’s inaugural season, “Hootie Hoo” has quickly become a cry of despair. With Napheesa Collier out for the season and Skylar Diggins sidelined for the first two games due to injury, the Owls have lost their winning identity, instead becoming overly dependent on Marina Mabrey as a high-volume, low-efficiency offensive engine.
How to help Owls?
We’ve never seen an in-season Unrivaled trade. And even though it’s still early, it seems obvious that Lunar Owls are in need of an injection of…something. Do you have any ideas for improving Owls? Are there any other Unrivaled swaps that you would like to see? Fire up the mythical Unrivaled trade machine and share your concoctions on The Feed.
That strategy seems sure to fail against Laces (8:45 p.m. ET, TNT/truTV), a team that not only prides themselves on defense and attention to detail, but also will be eager to return to the win column after their loss to Mist.
Any of Laces starting group of Jackie Young, Alyssa Thomas and Brittney Sykes can stifle Mabrey to shut down Lunar Owls’ already-lagging offense. That lineup likewise can overpower Owls’ disconnected defense, especially when they quickly turn defensive stops into transition scores.
It will be surprising if this one is not over early.
