Atlanta Dream Sweep Liberty for First WNBA Finals Trip Since 2013

The Atlanta Dream are heading to the WNBA Finals for the first time in 13 years. Atlanta edged the New York Liberty 85-83 on Friday night at Barclays Center to complete a three-game sweep of their semifinal series, reported by the Associated Press.

Angel Reese scored 22 points, including two early three-pointers, while Rhyne Howard added 21 and Jordin Canada delivered 19 points with 11 assists. Midseason acquisition DeWanna Bonner posted 13 points and 13 rebounds as Atlanta won without injured scoring leader Allisha Gray.

A frantic finish in Brooklyn

The final seconds were chaotic. Atlanta led 83-81 with under 18 seconds to play when Leonie Fiebich came up with a steal, and New York called timeout with 17 seconds left. Breanna Stewart drove on Naz Hillmon but missed a contested layup with nine seconds remaining that would have tied the game. Bonner grabbed the rebound, drew the foul and converted both free throws with 6.2 seconds left. Sabrina Ionescu's three-pointer missed, and Stewart scored on a putback at the buzzer to set the final margin.

Stewart and Jonquel Jones each scored 26 points for the Liberty, with Jones adding 14 rebounds. Stewart lamented missing what she called a "bunny" with a chance to tie the game, saying it "really stinks." First-year Liberty coach Chris DeMarco defended the final look, calling it "a good look" he would take "every single time."

New York had erased a 51-39 deficit in the third quarter and took a 68-66 lead into the fourth, but Atlanta answered with eight straight points to go up 75-71 with under five minutes left, holding the Liberty without a basket for more than six minutes. The first half brought two confrontations: after Isobel Borlase scored on consecutive possessions, Ionescu picked up an offensive foul and exchanged words with Reese, and a later blocked shot by Jones led to double technical fouls.

Reese manifests a Finals trip

The series-clinching win was personal for Reese. A year earlier she had posted "manifesting the finals" on social media while watching the championship round from home. Exactly 364 days later, she secured her own place in the series, recalling how she watched the last couple of Finals from her couch and texted teammate Kahleah Copper about getting just one playoff game.

Reese, the league's Defensive Player of the Year, joined the Dream in an offseason trade and has been central to their breakthrough. She scored 10 points in the opening quarter and added the final four points of the second period to give Atlanta a 44-39 halftime lead. Reese said the "job isn't done," adding that the team was happy with its position but "not satisfied."

Atlanta completed the sweep without Gray, its leading scorer, who hurt a finger in Game 1. Gray missed Game 2 and, though she went through warmups on Friday, was ruled out roughly an hour before tipoff. She spent the night on the bench supporting her teammates in a Howard jersey, while Howard compensated with 11 first-quarter points.

Dream chasing a first championship

Game 2 required overtime, with Reese and Canada each scoring 23 points in a 101-98 win at State Farm Arena on Oct. 7, sealed by Naz Hillmon's go-ahead layup in the extra period, according to a Sportsnet recap of the game (Sportsnet recap). Atlanta took the series opener 92-82.

Atlanta stands four wins from the first championship in franchise history, reported by the Associated Press (full game recap). The Dream will face the Golden State Valkyries, who swept the defending champion Las Vegas Aces in the other semifinal, with the WNBA Finals beginning Saturday, Oct. 17.

For New York, the exit closes a turbulent season. The Liberty entered the playoffs as the eighth seed, upset top-seeded Minnesota in the opening round, and ran into a Dream team that stayed undefeated through the postseason. Stewart described the loss as a lost opportunity, noting how hard it is to reach the Finals and harder still to win a championship. Two seasons after raising the franchise's first banner, the Liberty go home early. The Dream, unbeaten through five playoff games, are one series from a first title.