Dream vs. Liberty: Angel Reese Scores 22 as Atlanta Wins Semifinals Game 3 to Sweep Into the WNBA Finals

Last season, Angel Reese watched the end of the WNBA Finals from home and tweeted "manifesting the finals." The AP did the math: 364 days later, the manifestation came through.

Reese scored 22 points, Rhyne Howard added 21, and the Atlanta Dream held off the New York Liberty 85-83 on Friday night at Barclays Center to finish a 3-0 sweep of the best-of-five semifinals. Atlanta is headed to the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2013.

"Sat at home the last two years and watched it," Reese said of the championship round. Not this year.

Atlanta Hits the Gas

The Dream wasted no time. Howard poured in 11 points in the first quarter, Reese added 10, including two 3-pointers, and Atlanta stacked two 8-0 runs in the period, one to turn a 2-0 deficit into an 8-2 lead and another to break a 12-12 tie. It was 25-18 after one.

The second quarter got chippy. After Isobel Borlase scored on consecutive trips, Sabrina Ionescu was called for an offensive foul while setting a screen on her, and Ionescu and Reese started jawing until officials broke it up. A few minutes later, Jonquel Jones blocked Reese's shot, the two bumped chests while talking trash, and both were hit with technical fouls. Playoff basketball, unfiltered.

New York clawed within 40-39 late in the half before Reese closed the quarter with four straight points, sending Atlanta to the locker room up 44-39.

The Liberty Push Back

Atlanta opened the third with seven straight points to go up 51-39, part of an 11-0 run that spanned halftime. Series over, right? Not quite. New York answered with 10 straight points to make it 51-49, and a Jones tip-in eventually gave the Liberty their first lead since it was 2-0. New York won the third quarter 29-22 and took a 68-66 lead into the fourth.

When the Liberty pushed it to 71-66 early in the final period, the series suddenly had a pulse. That is when Atlanta's defense showed up again.

Nine Straight and a Frantic Finish

The Dream ripped off nine straight points, capped by two Jordin Canada free throws that made it 75-71 with 4:55 left. From there, every trip down the floor mattered. Breanna Stewart made two free throws. Howard scored on a layup and converted the three-point play for a 78-73 lead. Stewart hit a turnaround jumper. DeWanna Bonner went 3 for 3 at the line for an 81-75 cushion. Jones scored inside, Stewart made two more free throws, and it was 81-79.

Canada's short jumper with 1:15 left made it 83-79, and Jones answered with a layup off a Stewart pass at 59.0 to cut it to two. Atlanta then turned the ball over, giving New York the ball with 17.7 seconds left and a chance to tie. With nine seconds left, Stewart got to the rim but could not finish a contested layup. Bonner made both free throws at 6.2, and Stewart's basket with 0.2 seconds left only trimmed the final margin to two.

"I missed a bunny to tie the game which really stinks," Stewart said.

Reese, Howard and the Supporting Cast

Reese's line: 22 points on 7-of-18 shooting, 2 of 4 from 3, 6 of 6 at the line and nine rebounds, five of them offensive. Per the AP, Reese, the league's Defensive Player of the Year, arrived through an offseason trade, and she has become the emotional engine of a team that is suddenly four wins from a title.

Howard scored 21 with four 3s. Canada was surgical with 19 points, 11 assists and zero turnovers, going 8 of 8 at the line. Bonner grabbed 13 rebounds, 12 of them defensive, scored 13 and made all five of her free throws, including the two that sealed it. Borlase added 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting off the bench.

They did it without Allisha Gray, who has been sidelined since an injury in Game 1. Per the AP, she warmed up, was ruled out about an hour before tipoff and spent the night cheering from the bench in a Howard jersey.

For New York, Stewart and Jones each scored 26. Stewart made all 13 of her free throws and added six assists, while Jones shot 11 of 17 and grabbed 14 rebounds. Ionescu scored 12, all on 3-pointers, but went 4 of 12 from the field.

The Nine-Point Answer

The game turned on the 9-0 run early in the fourth. New York had all the momentum after flipping a 12-point deficit, held a five-point lead in its own building and was one good quarter from forcing a Game 4. Atlanta erased that lead in about three minutes and never trailed again. That is a team that has stopped being surprised by its own success.

The Sweep in Numbers

• 22 of 24: Atlanta at the free-throw line.
• 11 and 0: Canada's assists and turnovers.
• 13: Bonner's rebounds, 12 of them on the defensive end.
• 19-15: The Dream's edge in assists.
• 26 and 26: Stewart and Jones, New York's twin towers of offense.

Finals Bound for the First Time Since 2013

Atlanta swept the series 3-0. Next up is Golden State, which also went 3-0 against defending champion Las Vegas, with the WNBA Finals opening Saturday, Oct. 17. Per the AP, the Dream had not reached the semifinals since 2018 before this season, and they will now try to win the franchise's first championship.

The Dream are 5-0 in these playoffs and have won 10 straight games dating back to the regular season, including five straight over the Liberty.

For New York, it is a painful end. Per the AP, this was largely the same group that brought New York its first title two years ago. The Liberty entered as the No. 8 seed and toppled top-seeded Minnesota in the first round before Atlanta ended it.

"What I'm thinking about right now is a lost opportunity," Stewart said.

Manifested

Manifestation is usually something people post on social media and forget about. Reese turned it into a game plan, and the Dream turned it into a Finals trip. She is not done talking it into existence, either.

"The job isn't done," Reese said. "We're not satisfied."

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Postgame quotes as reported by the Associated Press.