The postseason loss puts the Dream on the brink.
The Atlanta Dream came into Sunday afternoon having just beaten the New York Liberty at their house on Thursday to finally secure their place in the playoffs. The team even packed enough clothes and supplies to stay in the New York area after that regular season finale given that, presuming a win, they faced the 1-seed Liberty in a best of three series to open the playoffs.
But Sunday, the Liberty showed why they had the WNBA’s best record in 2024 (32-8) with an 83-69 win to put themselves one win from the semifinals.
For the Dream, it was a tough loss, as they fell behind almost immediately and could never mount a needed comeback. Rhyne Howard powered the Dream with 14 points and Tina Charles added 12, but the team could only manage 27-of-68 shooting (40%) from the field and 3-for-16 (19%) shooting from three in a stagnant offensive output.
The Dream struggled to adapt to the hot shooting and physical play from the host Liberty. After one quarter, New York led 29-16 behind 5-for-6 shooting from deep and an 11-3 edge in rebounding. For the final three quarters, Atlanta largely matched their opponent, but, again, could never dig out of the hole that was dug in the first 10 minutes.
“New York, I think they did a great job of punching first,” head coach Tanisha Wright remarked about the opening minutes of the game. “When you’re in a series like this — and we just had a game with them — you want to come out and make a statement. And they did a good job of making a statement.”
“But the playoffs is a series for a reason,” she continued, “so we’ve got to go back to the drawing board, figure out how we’re going to handle their physicality, because I think that was the biggest thing that they changed up. They were physical, and we didn’t handle it well.”
About the venerable center Tina Charles, who recently claimed the WNBA record for most rebounds in a career, the head coach explained her deployment. When asked about why Charles played all 20 minutes in the first half, followed by just four in the second half, Wright explained, “the first half, [Charles] was the one getting us good looks on the offensive. And we always have to have a presence in the post to keep people honest.”
Tina Charles, herself, is in her 13th season in the WNBA, and this is her seventh trip to the postseason. Charles was acutely aware of her experience in this situation amid a young Dream team, saying, “this isn’t my first rodeo. I understand playoff basketball. I understand the mindset that you have to have coming in.”
The Dream will have an opportunity to bounce back on Tuesday in New York yet again. The stakes now are clear: either win and extend your season with the series-deciding game in Atlanta on Thursday or lose and be eliminated.