The Atlanta Dream lost to the Dallas Wings 94-77, ending their season with a 19-21 record and earning the fifth seed in the playoffs.
“Really proud of where we’re starting to trend to and what we’re looking at. I think we’re playing hard right now. We’re executing a bit better. We’re probably not at our peak right now, but today’s another opportunity to get to where we want to get to.” Said Coach Tanisha Wright pre-game. With the playoffs secured and the last regular season game ganging in the balance, the Dream are playing for playoff seeding.
The Dream still have business to take care of, and the Dallas Wings are on the menu. After missing their first three shots, the team settles down behind the dynamic duo Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray. Howard and Gray bring the offense and transition defense that you expect of All-Star guards. Dallas’s Teaira McCowan has an answer of her own, as she is eating up the paint early with nearly half of the Wings’ early points. Her teammate, Arike Ogunbowale, is not far behind, racking up 7 points in the quarter. Atlanta creates some quick baskets, including a Naz Hillmon buzzer beat, as the quarter ends with the Wings up 22-20.
The second quarter opens with Haley Jones spreading Dallas’s defense by passing the ball to Aari McDonald, who hits Howard for a three. Atlanta is trying its best to go shot-for-shot with Dallas by being aggressive on defense and creating offense, but Dallas is outworking the Dream in the paint to the tune of 26 points. As the latter half of the quarter arrives, Ogunbowale brings high energy, forcing a steal that translates into easy points. Still, the Dream do not give up easily and get to the foul line several times, only to have Ogunbowale answer with points, including a huge three on the other end. Her production is enough to keep Atlanta at bay at halftime. The Wings lead 44-39 behind Ogunbowale’s 12 points and four assists.
The Wings pick up right where they left off, with Natasha Howard scoring right under the basket. Monique Billings and Gray come back with five points of their own. Atlanta continues pushing the pace, but that leads to two turnovers. Dallas continues building their lead, and it’s up to ten points with just under five minutes to play in the quarter. Howard is able to hit a three ball, off a pass from Gray and a screen from Parker, to cut into the lead. Naz Hillmon makes a heads-up play to hit Howard again for a quick bucket to cut the lead to four, but Dallas is doing all it can to keep the Dream from taking over. By the end of three, they still lead 66-58 despite 17 points from Howard.
The question of nearly every fourth quarter this season is: Can the Dream finish? The Wings are not stopping despite whatever plans the Dream have. Three starters for Dallas are in double figures, along with ten points from Kalani Brown off the bench. Atlanta takes a timeout to settle down with just under eight minutes remaining. However, Ogunbowale unleashes five quick points to extend the lead to 19. Atlanta is fighting with points from Howard and Parker, but it is all Ogunbowale, who is shooting lights out from downtown. She’s up to a game-high 29 points that sends fans for the exits. With virtually every starter pulled, the Dream do not have enough today to overcome the Wings. The Wings take this one 94-77.
“Not the way you want to end the season, but the season is over. Can’t dwell on it,” said Coach Wright after the game. “(You) have to get ready for the playoffs. That’s what we’re going to focus on now.”
Wright also shared her thoughts on why Dallas was successful today in making the game very tough for Atlanta. “I think their length is probably a factor in that. They’re aggressive on the ball. (But) We have to be able to handle that. At the end of the day, that’s who we have to go through. We have to figure out a way to not allow it to bother us, plain and simple.”
Atlanta ends the regular season at 19-21 and a fifth-seed ranking for the playoffs. They will have a few days to figure out how to adjust to the team that won the season series 3-0. They open the playoffs on Friday against the Wings at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas.
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