ATLANTA, Ga. — The Atlanta Dream are headed back to the WNBA Finals after finishing a three-game sweep of the New York Liberty with an 85-83 victory Friday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Angel Reese scored 22 points and Rhyne Howard added 21 as Atlanta held on in the final minute. Jordin Canada finished with 19 points and 11 assists. The fourth-seeded Dream are 5-0 in the playoffs after also sweeping the Washington Mystics in the first round.
Atlanta will face the Golden State Valkyries in a best-of-seven championship series that begins Oct. 17 on the road. The Valkyries swept the defending-champion Las Vegas Aces in the other semifinal Friday. The Dream are seeking the franchise first championship after previous Finals trips in 2010, 2011 and 2013.
The Dream led by 12 points in the first half Friday but had to survive a Liberty push. Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones scored 26 points apiece for New York. Atlanta limited the Liberty to 15 points in the fourth quarter, and DeWanna Bonner added 13 points and 13 rebounds while Allisha Gray missed a second straight game with a left hand injury.
Reese, in her first season with Atlanta after an offseason trade from Chicago, said the job is not done and that the team is not satisfied. Coach Karl Smesko club reached the championship series for the fourth time in franchise history and had not been to the Finals since 2013.
Mayor Andre Dickens administration has treated the Dream playoff run as a major civic moment for Atlanta, with home Finals games expected later in the series at the team Atlanta arena dates. Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum department typically increases event staffing when championship rounds bring larger downtown crowds.
Game 1 is Oct. 17 at Golden State, followed by Game 2 on Oct. 19 in the Bay Area before the series shifts to Atlanta for Games 3 and 4 on Oct. 22 and Oct. 24. Fans in Atlanta were already looking ahead to those home dates as the Dream chase four more wins for a first championship.
