Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese and Rose BC will be the second game of a double-header as Unrivaled makes its debut on Friday. The Mist and Lunar Owls will square off in the league's first-ever matchup, which will be highlighted by two former Sky guards in Courtney Vandersloot and Courtney Williams. Both games are set to be broadcast on TNT.
Reese and Rose BC will tip off against a few familiar faces when they take to the court on Friday.
Vinyl BC's roster will be led by former Chicago Sky head coach Teresa Weatherspoon, who made her WNBA head coaching debut in Chicago 20 years after she played in her final WNBA game with the Los Angeles Sparks. Weatherspoon was let go after just one season with the Sky despite working through plenty of roster turnover before and during the 2024 WNBA season. The Hall-of-Fame guard will take up her fourth head coaching stint after working as the lead coach for the Sky, Louisiana Tech and the Westchester Phantoms of the American Basketball Association.
Vinyl BC will be headlined by two of the WNBA's better rebounding talents in Indiana Fever forward Aliyah Boston and Los Angeles Sparks forward Dearica Hamby. The duo both earned All-Star selections last season as they led their respective squads in rebounds per game. Hamby will face off against her Sparks teammate in forward Azura Stevens, who first signed with LA in 2023 after spending three seasons in Chicago.
Reese proved to be one of the league's best rebounders with a league-leading average of 13.1 boards per game last season. She averaged just over 13 rebounds per game in four matchups with the Fever and about 10 per game in three games against the Sparks during the 2024 season. Both Reese and Stevens will be key in ensuring the Rose can keep pace with the Vinyl on the boards as they look to set the tone in their first-ever Unrivaled campaign.
Dallas Wings guard Arike Ogunbowale, one of the league's top scorers last season, will be a formidable matchup for Rose's backcourt options. The Atlanta Dream guard duo of Jordin Canada and Rhyne Howard, along with Sparks guard Rae Burrell, will round out Vinyl BC's roster. Reese and Rose BC must counter the scoring potential of Howard and Ogunbowale after they led their respective teams in points per game last season.
Rose BC will tip off against the Vinyl at 8 p.m. EST. The game will be broadcast on TNT and streamed on Max.