Plum’s historic performance not enough as Mist captures Unrivaled title
The celebration inside Sephora Arena felt well-earned, as did the championship trophy won by the Mist basketball club
Mist BC gathered in the Sephora Arena’s news conference after the final buzzer, sharing pizza and champagne after surviving a championship game that never felt secure until the final moments. On the court, the path to the title was anything but comfortable.
Phantom BC made this game competitive as Kelsey Plum pulled off a historic scoring performance that nearly carried her team to a championship. Plum finished with 40 points, and left the game setting the Unrivaled playoff single-game scoring record.
But Breanna Stewart, who has built a career on delivering in the biggest of championship moments, had another championship legacy-defining moment. Stewart finished with 32 points, four assists and two blocks, earning 2026 Unrivaled Finals MVP while leading Mist BC past Phantom BC.
Plum didn’t wait to get the game going as the first half belonged almost entirely to belonged to her. The first quarter Plum set the tone by drilling three consecutive three-pointers. She scored 13 of Phantom’s first 17 points and 18 points in the first quarter. She made all four of her three-point attempts and missed just one shot in eight attempts.
Mist BC absorbed the early surge without losing control of the game.
Arike Ogunbowale and Alanna Smith came off the bench and helped Mist late in the first quarter. The pair sparked a 10–3 run that brought Mist back into the game and pulled the score even at 24.
Plum never really cooled off as she went into halftime with 22 points and the record for most points scored in a half for Unrivaled. Plum got help from Kiki Iriafen who nearly had a double double of 13 points and eight rebounds in the first half.
The Mist had two double-digit scorers in Ogunbowale and Stewart with 12 points apiece.
Championship games often hinge on a short stretch of momentum, and for Mist BC that moment came in the third quarter. Stewart started making her championship imprint by going on a personal 12-2 run. That surge flipped the energy of the game and pushed Mist into a double-digit lead.
“I think the first thing that came to my mind was just like, we deserve this,” Stewart said afterward. “We’ve been tested, we’ve gone through things, we’ve lost games. ... but this group doesn’t waver.”
Mist shot 66.7% in the third quarter while controlling the paint and capitalizing on Phantom turnovers. What looked like a Plum showcase during the first half gradually turned into a Mist surge as Stewart began asserting herself on both ends of the floor.
The Phantom still had one final response. Plum continued to go ballistic and her teammate Tiffany Hayes also joined her as they went for 16 of the team’s 19 points in the third quarter. Entering the fourth quarter, Plum had 30 points.
However, it wasn’t enough as the Mist opened the fourth quarter with a 6-0 run that stretched the lead to 12 points and forced Phantom to chase the game the rest of the way.
Additionally, the Phantom also played without defensive anchor Aliyah Boston, who won Defensive Player of the Year in which Plum acknowledged after the game.
“We’re down an All-Unrivaled player, All-WNBA player, Defensive Player of the Year,” Plum said. “She anchors us defensively all year.”
Even so, Plum credited Mist for executing in the decisive moments. “You’ve got to give them a lot of credit,” she said. “Stewie was phenomenal.”
Once again, in the end, Stewart once again found herself at the center of a championship celebration, leading Mist BC through a game that tested every part of their roster before the title was finally secured.
