Angel Reese Leads Dream Past Valkyries to Tie Finals

Atlanta evened the WNBA Finals at one game apiece with a 79-65 victory over the Golden State Valkyries in Game 2, powered by Angel Reese's 30 points and 16 rebounds. The win gave the Dream their first Finals victory in franchise history after losing their previous 10 Finals games dating back to 2010.

Reese, the league's Defensive Player of the Year, delivered a dominant performance Monday after struggling to make her usual impact in Atlanta's 68-64 loss in Game 1. The forward, playing her first season with the Dream after being traded from Chicago, finished the opening game with 14 points on 5-of-11 shooting.

Atlanta coach Karl Smesko said Reese's determination was evident before the second game began. Her response helped the Dream take control of the series after the Valkyries had won all three regular-season meetings between the teams and the Finals opener.

Reese acknowledged that her second-half performance in Game 1 fell short of her expectations and said she entered the rematch determined to make a difference.

"I let my team down last game, not really contributing as much as I could in the second half," Reese said after Monday's win. "I just wanted to make sure I came out tonight and left my mark. And I think I did that."

The forward said Atlanta's frustration after the opening loss motivated the team to respond. She also described her determination to finish the second game feeling that she had fully contributed.

"I was hungry," Reese said. "I think we let one slip away [Saturday]. You can't do that.

We all came together and were pissed. We felt disappointed, we felt embarrassed. I walked off the court not feeling like myself, and I wanted to make sure that this game, I did everything I could do to walk off the court and feel like who I am."

Reese's performance placed her among an exclusive group of WNBA Finals players. According to the game report, she joined Jonquel Jones, who achieved the feat for Connecticut in 2019, and Breanna Stewart, who did so for Seattle in 2020, as the only players to record at least 30 points and 15 rebounds in a Finals game. At 24 years and 166 days old, Reese also became the youngest player to record at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in the Finals.

Atlanta's defensive pressure and trips to the free-throw line proved decisive. The Dream scored 24 points off 19 Golden State turnovers and converted 30 of 35 free throws, compared with the Valkyries' 16 makes on 19 attempts.

After taking a 39-37 halftime lead, Atlanta outscored Golden State 21-9 in the third quarter. The Dream made all 12 of their free throws in the period, creating separation in a game between the regular season's top two defenses by defensive rating.

Golden State coach Natalie Nakase said her team would review the fouls called during the game while preparing for the next matchup. She also emphasized the need for better execution.

"We're going to see how close these fouls were," Nakase said about reviewing game film before Game 3. "[The Dream] do lunge forward at times. We've just got to make sure we take a close look. We have to play harder, No. 1, but we have to play smarter as well."

The Valkyries struggled to generate offense against Atlanta's defense. Gabby Williams, who scored 26 points in Game 1, finished with 14 points on 3-of-15 shooting, while teammate Tiffany Hayes also recorded 14 points.

Point guard Veronica Burton added 11 points and accepted responsibility for the team's ball-control problems, despite committing only three turnovers herself.

"We were just a little too loose with the ball," Burton said. "It starts with me. I think we had a lot of times where we were hesitant or we weren't on that same page, and that's where it led to turnovers."

Atlanta point guard Jordin Canada contributed 13 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. She praised Reese's impact on the team and her determination to succeed on the Finals stage.

"Angel is such a generational talent, just to see her thrive in the Finals has been really special to watch," Canada said. "You can just see that she wants it really bad. We feed off her energy."

Game 3 is scheduled for Wednesday in Atlanta, where the Dream and Valkyries will compete for the series lead.