Without a doubt, the talent in Athletes Unlimited Basketball has once again proven to be off the charts. Specifically, double-doubles and high-scoring games seem to be theme in Nashville this season. Games 15 and 16 stayed true to that theme on Friday night. That being said, here is a recap of the second doubleheader of Week Three.
Game 15: Eclipse Vs. Glow
Photo Credit: Athletes Unlimited
In this game, Indiana Fever guard Shey Peddy and the Eclipse faced off against Phoenix Mercury center/forward Natasha Mack and the Glow. The first quarter was low-scoring as the Eclipse held a 19 – 10 lead over the Glow. NaLyssa Smith, forward for the Las Vegas Aces, led the Eclipse with four points in the quarter. For the Glow, guard Kayana Traylor and forward Dorie Harrison each had five points in the quarter.
Quarter number two saw an offensive resurgence with both teams putting 20+ points. Chicago Sky guard Ariel Atkins accounted for 11 of the Eclipse’s 22 points in the quarter. Los Angeles Sparks guard Sarah Ashlee Barker, Minnesota Lynx guard Jaylyn Sherrod, and center Mercedes Russell had four points each as the Glow had 23 points in the quarter.
At halftime, the Eclipse had a 42 – 32 lead versus the Glow.
All things considered, the third quarter belonged to the Eclipse as they outscored the Glow 29 – 15 in the quarter. Atkins and forward Alissa Pili scored seven and six points, respectively, for the Eclipse in the quarter. Mack scored six points for the Glow, who found themselves down 61 – 57 entering the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, a combined 54 points were put up between the squads. Ultimately, the Eclipse held on for the 89 – 83 win over the Glow.
Eclipse Vs. Glow Recap
As For MVP 1 Honors, Atkins won it as the Sky guard scored a game-high 22 points for the Eclipse. Peddy and her 15 points and six assists garnered MVP 2 Honors as Smith took home MVP 3 Honors. The Aces forward scored 17 points, shooting 63.6 percent from the field in the victory. Pili put up 11 points, her fourth game this season with 10+ points.
Five players for the Glow scored in double figures in the loss as Barker led the team with 16 points. Guard Kiara Leslie notched a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Photo Credit: Athletes Unlimited
Mack got her sixth double-double with 12 points and 14 boards. Russell scored 11 points as Traylor got 10 points.
Game 16: Rhythm Vs. Gold Rush
Here, New York Liberty guard Rebekah Gardner and the Rhythm squared off versus guard Odyssey Sims and the Gold Rush. Quarter number one saw a tight battle as the Gold Rush got a 24 – 23 lead at the end of quarter.
In the quarter, Aces forward Kierstan Bell scored six points as guard Te-Hina PaoPao of the Atlanta Dream had six for Gold Rush. For the Rhythm, Connecticut Sun center Tina Charles and guard Zia Cooke had five points apiece.
Looking at the second quarter, the Gold Rush got the edge in scoring by a 23 – 21 margin over the Rhythm. Sims led the Gold Rush with seven points as Charles had seven points for the Rhythm in the quarter. At the half, the Gold Rush held a 47 – 44 lead against the Rhythm.
Without question, the Rhythm found their groove in the third quarter with 32 points. In this instance, Charles and guard Kaitlyn Chen of the Golden State Valkyries led the way scoring for the squad. Charles had 12 points while Chen put up 10.
Of the 20 points in the quarter by the Gold Rush, Sims had seven as PaoPao scored five. Going into the fourth, the Rhythm had a lead of 76 – 67 over the Gold Rush.
Photo Credit: Athletes Unlimited
While each team put 27 points apiece in the fourth, the Rhythm outlasted the Gold Rush with a 103 – 94 victory. It is important to note that the 103 points is the second-most points scored in this Athletes Unlimited Basketball season.
Rhythm Vs. Gold Rush Recap
First, Chen took home MVP 1 Honors as the Valkyries guard scored 32 points with five rebounds in the Rhythm victory. The MVP 3 Honors was given to Charles as she put up a double-double with 26 points and 10 boards.
Cooke added 14 points for the team while Gardner scored 11 points along with six rebounds. For Isabelle Harrison, she had 10 points with eight boards in the matchup.
Sims led the Gold Rush with 30 points in addition to six rebounds and assists, getting MVP 2 Honors. Sun forward Aneesah Morrow of the Sun scored 25 points with seven boards in 26 minutes of action. Finally, PaoPao scored 15 points, the most in a game for the Dream guard this season.
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