Recap: Team Sims uses second-half surge to defeat Team Mitchell, 97-85

So, after falling behind by 11 points at the intermission, there was no panic in Sims or her teammates. They just went to work in the second half and erupted for 60 points en route to a 97-85 victory over Team Mitchell to complete Wednesday’s Athletes Unlimited Basketball doubleheader at Fair Park Coliseum.

Guard Kierstan Bell anchored the comeback victory for Team Sims, securing MVP 1 honors after her second consecutive double-double with 20 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Bell, who has scored in double figures in 6-of-7 games this season, finished the night with a season-best 605 leaderboard points.

Sims, meanwhile, continued her outstanding play this season after netting 28 points on 11-of-18 shooting from the field, while dishing out six assists with six rebounds. Honored as the MVP 3 selection following the victory, Sims held onto her leaderboard advantage after posting 601 points.

Team Mitchell, which led by 48-37 at the break, was led by captain Kelsey Mitchell’s 28 points and seven assists, while forward Isabelle Harrison led all scorers with 31 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field and a 10-for-12 performance at the charity stripe.

Mitchell garnered MVP 2 distinction and finished the night with 329 leaderboard points, while Harrison paced Team Mitchell with 386 points.

KEY MOMENT

After Mitchell evened the score at 78-78 with a pair of free throws at the 7:42 mark of the fourth quarter, Team Sims went to work and scored 17 of the next 21 points to claim a 95-82 lead it did not relinquish. Sims and Bell combined to score seven points during the outburst.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

After posting her third game with 600 or more leaderboard points this season, Sims owns a 418-point advantage over forward NaLyssa Smith heading into Friday’s twinbill. Harrison, meanwhile, jumped into the No. 3 spot on the leaderboard, but holds a slim 12-point edge over guard Lexie Hull.

GAME NOTES

• Team Sims and Team Mitchell combined to sink 17 three-pointers in Wednesday’s nightcap, moving the league’s season total to 205 triples through 14 games … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every three-pointer made this season as part of its ‘Trees for Threes’ initiative.

• Team Sims challenged a foul called against Sims with 4:39 remaining in the fourth quarter … The challenge was successful and the foul was negated … Teams are now 9-for-20 (.450) in captain’s challenges through 14 games.

• Team Mitchell erupted for 36 points in the second quarter on Wednesday, setting an Athletes Unlimited record for most points by a team in the second quarter of a game … The previous mark was 33 points by Team Cloud against Team Harrison on Feb. 23, 2022.

• Sims upped her streak of consecutive double-digit scoring efforts to 15 games … She also extended her league record by netting 20 or more points for the 14th time in her Athletes Unlimited career.

• Mitchell has now scored in double figures during all 18 games of her Athletes Unlimited career after authoring 28 points in a losing effort, including 18 in the first half.

• Mitchell now owns 10 career Athletes Unlimited games with 20 or more points, which ranks fourth in the league’s history.

• Harrison has authored a streak of 16 consecutive double-digit scoring performances following her 31 points on Wednesday … Harrison has now reached double figures in 21-of-22 career Athletes Unlimited games.

• In addition, Harrison has 11 career games with 20 or more points in her Athletes Unlimited career, which are the third-most in league history behind Sims (14) and guard/forward DiJonai Carrington (12) … She also registered her second career 30-point game in Athletes Unlimited play.

• After scoring just four points in her first five games, forward Lydia Rivers tallied a season-high 11 points in the win for Team Sims … Rivers shot 5-for-8 from the field and added four rebounds.

GAME MVPS

• #1 – Kierstan Bell (Team Sims, +90)
• #2 – Kelsey Mitchell (Team Mitchell, +60)
• #3 – Odyssey Sims (Team Sims, +30)