Paige Bueckers got embarrassed by Chelsea Gray during the 1-on-1 basketball tournament presented by Unrivaled. It was not even close.
And then she threw a tantrum because of a questionable foul call.
Although Bueckers deserves credit for playing, the WNBA superstar’s crash out was a tough look. The foul call was not going to matter. The deficit was already too much to overcome.
Chelsea Gray dominated Paige Bueckers in the Unrivaled tournament.
32 players were invited to compete in the 1-on-1 basketball tournament presented by Unrivaled. They are competing for a prize pool of $300,000.
The format is simple.
A single-elimination, bracket-style tournament leads to a best-of-three series for the championship. Every game is 10 minutes long to 11 points (by 2s and 3s). Key rules include a fast-paced seven-second shot clock, “make it, take it” possession and only one free throw for fouls worth the value of the shot. For example, a foul on a three-pointer results in one three-point free throw.
Players are divided into four position-based pools, which siphons out into a five-round bracket. The winner gets $200,000. The runner-up gets $50,000. Semifinalists get $25,000.
Paige Bueckers, a 1-seed, defeated Kate Martin and Arike Ogunbowale to advance to the quarterfinal round on Friday night. Chelsea Gray defeated Natasha Cloud and Jackie Young to meet her there.
It was a matchup of #1 vs. #2 that went in favor of the lower seed. Gray absolutely dominated Bueckers by a final score of 11-2. She will play Kelsey Plum in the semifinals. Bueckers was eliminated before the money.
Foul on the floor or on the shot?
Chelsea Gray held a 9-2 advantage over Paige Bueckers on the final possession of the game. She drove right to the hoop, cut back to the left and put up a shot. Officials called a shooting foul. Gray made the two-point free throw to win 11-2.
Bueckers was livid. She thought the foul should’ve been called on the floor, not on the shot. The officials disagreed. There was nothing more she could do. Gray just had to make the free throw.
The loss did not sit well with Bueckers, who stormed off of the court— after a brief exchange of respect with Gray. Her frustration with the foul (and the blowout loss) was obvious.
Bueckers got beat at her own game. She could not handle it. The whistle did not go her way (for once) so she crashed out on national television. Tough.