Recap: Odyssey Sims paces Gold Rush in 80-72 victory against Rhythm
NASHVILLE — Guard Odyssey Sims scored a team-high 21 points to lead Gold Rush (1-1) to an 80-72 victory against Rhythm (0-2) in the finale of Friday night’s Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball doubleheader at Nashville Municipal Auditorium.
Sims, who received MVP 1 accolades and 548 leaderboard points, added seven rebounds and six assists in the comeback victory. Guard Aerial Powers came off the bench to contribute 16 points with nine rebounds to claim MVP 2 laurels.
Guard Sarah Ashlee Barker added 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, with three rebounds and four assists. Forward Teana Muldrow chipped in 12 points with six rebounds while center Kiah Stokes paced the squad with a game-high 15 rebounds.
Rhythm was anchored by a game-high 22 points from guard Kia Nurse, who earned MVP 3 distinction in the setback after knocking down four three-pointers and all four of her free throws.
Forward Natasha Mack authored her first double-double of the season with 11 points and a game-high 15 rebounds, while guard Lexie Brown tallied 15 points with four assists.
KEY MOMENT
Gold Rush overcame a 64-61 deficit by scoring 17 of the game’s final 25 points, including eight free throws in the last three minutes.
LEADERBOARD IMPACT
Eclipse holds all 10 of the top positions on the leaderboard entering Saturday’s Week One finale. Powers rose 12 spots and leads the Gold Rush in the standings in 14th place with 662 points.
RHYTHM NOTES
- Guard Kia Nurse has now scored in double figures in 11-of-14 career AU Pro Basketball games after finishing with 22 points on Friday night … Nurse also surpassed the 20-point plateau for the fourth time, including her second straight contest.
- Nurse has now garnered Game MVP honors in three straight contests dating back to last season.
- Guard Lexie Brown registered her 37th career double-digit scoring output on Friday night with 15 points against Gold Rush.
- Forward Natasha Mack pulled down 15 rebounds to become just the 10th player in league history to finish with at least 15 caroms.
Next Game for Rhythm: Saturday, February 7, vs. Eclipse (6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT)
GOLD RUSH NOTES
- Gold Rush initiated a captain’s challenge with 9:22 remaining in the fourth quarter on a foul called against guard Odyssey Sims … The challenge was unsuccessful.
- Sims extended her streak of consecutive double-digit scoring efforts to 26 games in a row after contributing 21 points against Eclipse on Friday … She has now posted 10 or more points in 54-of-56 career contests.
- Sims also became the first player in AU Pro Basketball history to register 2,000 career minutes … The five-year Athletes Unlimited veteran has now played 2,035 minutes.
- Sims earned the 28th Game MVP award of her AU Pro Basketball career, extending her league record … She also claimed her ninth career MVP 1 certificate, moving her into a tie for the all-time lead with guard Allisha Gray.
- Center Kiah Stokes is now 1-of-10 players in league history to record 15 or more rebounds in a game.
- Forward Teana Muldrow scored in double figures for the sixth time in 14 career AU Pro Basketball appearances.
Next Game for Gold Rush: Saturday, February 7 vs. Glow (9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT)
GAME MVPS
- #1 – Odyssey Sims (Gold Rush, +90 points
- #2 – Aerial Powers (Gold Rush), +60 points
- #3 – Kia Nurse (Rhythm), +30 points
