The Atlanta Dream are on a mission. After battling their way to the No. 4 seed, they took games from the Washington Mystics to sweep their first-round series. They followed that up with a 10-point win over the New York Liberty in Game 1 of their second-round series. On paper, the Dream were the favorites, but — with championship experience and having just knocked out the No. 1 seed Lynx — the Liberty were a tough opponent. And still the Dream rolled right through them.
They've gotten contributions from everyone in the postseason, but especially Rhyne Howard (19.0 points, 4.3 assists, 4.0 rebounds, 2.7 steals) and newly crowned Defensive Player of the Year Angel Reese (15.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 2.3 blocks and 2.0 steals). However, they'll need to dig deep and take things to another level with star guard Allisha Gray ruled out for Game 2 with a hand injury.
If the Liberty are going to even the series in Game 2, they'll need a lot more from Breanna Stewart on offense. She dominated against the Lynx in the first round but only managed 2 rebounds and 3 assists in Game 1, needing 13 shots to get to her 19 points. The Dream defense is among the best in the league and they'll need Stewart to be sharp, with supporting players like Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones coming up big as well.
Score
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Box score: Dream vs. Liberty player stats and team stats
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