Recap: Sims' 30-Point Effort Leads Team Siegrist to 97-79 Win

Sims, who garnered MVP 1 notice and 780 leaderboard points, netted a season-high 30 points after making 13-of-25 field goal attempts in addition to all three of her free throws. She narrowly missed a triple-double after finishing with nine rebounds and nine assists.

Siegrist, meanwhile, enjoyed a solid debut as a team captain after piloting her team to the victory with 19 points and eight rebounds. The former Villanova star sank 9-of-19 shots from the floor and secured MVP honors along with 522 leaderboard points.

Forward Isabelle Harrison chipped in 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the field in addition to a perfect 5-for-5 at the free throw line, while forward Maya Caldwell added 12 points with four rebounds and four assists.

Guard Kia Nurse earned MVP 2 accolades in the loss for Team Nurse, netting a game-high 35 points, including 25 in the opening half. Nurse was 11-for-22 from the floor, including a 6-of-10 showing from three-point range, and converted 7-of-9 free throws while adding five rebounds.

Guard Evina Westbrook contributed 13 points with seven rebounds in the setback, while guard Sydney Colson tallied 10 points with three assists.

KEY MOMENT

Team Siegrist trailed by a 25-18 margin after the opening quarter before putting together a 13-4 burst over the first four minutes of the second period for a 31-29 advantage. After Team Nurse reclaimed the edge at 46-43 with 2:11 left in the first half, Team Siegrist rattled off 10 of the next 12 points to take a 53-48 edge at the intermission.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

Sims, who holds the top spot on the Week Two leaderboard, vaulted six spots up the season standings into second place behind Siegrist, who has a 115-point overall advantage. Harrison, meanwhile, elevated her position by 10 spots on the season rankings and stands fifth with 1,522 total points.

NOTES OF INTEREST

• Wednesday’s game marked the earliest start to a contest in Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball history … Nearly 1,000 students from the Metro Nashville Public Schools system attended the contest along with mascots from several local sports teams.

• Team Nurse initiated a captain’s challenge on a foul call with 1:13 remaining in the fourth quarter, which was unsuccessful … Teams are now 2-for-8 in captain’s challenges through seven games this season.

• Nurse and Siegrist made their debuts as Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball captains with Wednesday’s matinee … Captains now stand 10-10 all-time in their first game as a team leader in the league’s four-year history.

• Sims became the second player in Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball history to earn 20 or more career Game MVP awards after securing MVP 1 honors on Wednesday … Guard Kelsey Mitchell holds the league record with 24 career Game MVP certificates during her three seasons (2022-24).

• Siegrist has earned a Game MVP award in all four of her games this season … Dating back to last season, she has been a Game MVP in five of her last six outings.

• Team Siegrist scored 35 points in the second quarter, marking the highest single period by a team in the league this season … The 35 points were also one shy of matching the league record for points by a team in a second quarter, which was set by Team [Kelsey] Mitchell against Team Sims on March 8, 2023.

• Team Siegrist converted 94.4 percent of its free throw attempts (17-of-18), which is the best mark of any team in the league this season.

• Nurse established a new Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball record by scoring 25 points in the first half, eclipsing the previous mark set by center Kalani Brown, who had 24 points in the first half against Team [Kelsey] Mitchell on January 28, 2022.

• Nurse’s 35 points are the most by an AU Pro Basketball player since March 16, 2024, when Allisha Gray erupted for 42 points against Team [Tiffany] Mitchell.

• Wednesday marked the 15th time in league history where a player has made six or more three-pointers in a game, including the second time by Nurse this season.

• Siegrist extended her streak of consecutive double-digit scoring performances to 16 in a row.

• Sims has reached double figures in scoring in 16 consecutive games after finishing Wednesday’s opener with 30 points … She owns 44 double-digit scoring outputs in 46 career contests, extending her league record.

• Sims has also surpassed 25 points in a game 21 times in her career following Wednesday’s performance … She also notched her 12th career game with 30 or more points.

• Sims is now 22-for-24 from the free throw line this season after converting all three of her tries on Wednesday.

• Harrison recorded the 35th double-digit scoring output of her Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball career.

• Team Siegrist matched a league season high by scoring 48 points in the paint … Team [Kierstan] Bell had 48 points in the paint against Team [Isabelle] Harrison on February 7, before Team Colson posted 48 paint points against Team Bell on February 8.

GAME MVPS

• #1 – Odyssey Sims (Team Siegrist), +90 points

• #2 – Kia Nurse (Team Nurse), +60 points

• #3 – Maddy Siegrist (Team Siegrist), +30 points