Angel Reese, Atlanta Dream sweep New York Liberty to reach first WNBA Finals since 2013
TheGrio...
Atlanta survived New York’s second-half comeback and will face Golden State for the championship beginning October 17.
Angel Reese scored 22 points and grabbed nine rebounds Friday as the Atlanta Dream beat the New York Liberty 85-83, sweeping their semifinal series to reach the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2013. Reese joined Atlanta through an April trade from Chicago and delivered a record-setting September performance, leading to her becoming the league’s Defensive Player of the Year.
Rhyne Howard scored 21 points, and Jordin Canada added 19 points and 11 assists. Atlanta remained unbeaten in the playoffs without leading scorer Allisha Gray, who suffered a finger injury in Game 1 and missed the final two games.
A year ago, Reese was watching the Finals at home and posted “manifesting the finals.” She had missed the playoffs in her first two WNBA seasons with Chicago. Now, after playing some of the best basketball of her professional career, Reese has the opportunity to add a WNBA title to the high school and NCAA titles she won before entering the league.
“The job isn’t done,” she said.
Atlanta will face the Golden State Valkyries, who swept defending champion Las Vegas, in a best-of-seven Finals series beginning Oct. 17 at Chase Center in San Francisco. Neither team has won a WNBA championship.
Reese’s WNBA journey has come with both highs and lows. After being drafted by the Chicago Sky, Reese reset the WNBA record book for rebounds by a rookie and would set the league’s single-season rebounding record for average. She would then set the league’s record for consecutive double-doubles. But Reese’s individual success didn’t translate to postseason success for the Sky, who briefly suspended her after she publicly called for the team to improve last September.
The Sky then traded Reese in April in a blockbuster move that has proved dividends for Atlanta, both on and off the court.