Kelsey Plum’s audacious challenge ignited a captivating final-minute showdown with Angel Reese, a thrilling moment defining Unrivaled's intense season finale.
Kelsey Plum watched Angel Reese catch the ball on the block and start to kick it back out. She said no.
"She had the ball, and she was gonna give it up, and I was like, 'No, no, no. Keep it. Let's do this,'" Plum said after Phantom BC defeated Rose BC 72-68 in Unrivaled's regular season finale Thursday.
Reese kept it. She turned and backed Plum down toward the basket. Plum dug in. A foul was eventually called, but not before the two went at it long enough to make the whole building stop and watch.
"She's backing me down, I'm trying to stand my ground. She's incredibly strong. Eventually, they called a foul. But I really wanted that one," Plum said. "I was like, 'Come on, y'all. I'm a featherweight, going against a power player here. Give me something.'"
Plum finished with 35 points in 21 minutes. Reese, playing just 14 minutes in her first appearance for Rose BC, had 17 points and eight rebounds and looked like she had been there the whole time.
Phantom won, but that was almost secondary. What the last night of the regular season really came down to was a guard talking a power forward into posting her up and then refusing to budge when she did.
Phantom finished 11-3 and has the top seed. Rose BC is the six seed at 5-9. Thursday was Reese's first game for Rose BC. She had 17 points and eight rebounds in 14 minutes and spent most of that time making life hard for whoever was in front of her.
Plum said that is the point of all of this.
"Something I've learned about Unrivaled is just the fan experience, and how much they're able to connect with us, us with them," she said. "It feels personal, right? It feels like they're right there, with the best players in the world. This is entertainment at the end of the day."
The court is smaller in Unrivaled, and the fans sit close enough to hear the conversations. When Plum told Reese to keep the ball, they heard it. That is kind of the whole thing.
Plum was adamant about wanting another round.
"I want it again," she said.
The playoffs start this week. If the bracket works out, that possession won't be forgotten.