By KACE KIESCHNICK, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
Ex-LSU standout Angel Reese had another quiet offensive night as the Golden State Valkyries beat the Atlanta Dream 64-55 on Monday to take a 3-2 series lead in the WNBA Finals.
Reese, who is averaging 17 points a game in her first WNBA playoff run, scored just seven points, shooting 2-of-8 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the charity stripe.
Since Angel Reese taunted Golden State players with a “too small” gesture after Game 3, she has scored 15 points on 20% shooting from the field and committed 9 turnovers. The Dream haven’t won since this moment. https://t.co/2t6SI0ttZM
— Dan Zaksheske (@RealDanZak) October 27, 2026
It is the fewest she has scored in the playoffs, passing the eight points she put up in Game 4 on Saturday. Reese has now scored seven or fewer points only three times in 53 games this season.
Both Reese and her coach, Karl Smesko, expressed their frustrations of the officiating after the game. Reese played through a lot of contact but only earned three trips to the free throw line. She was called for four personal fouls of her own.
“I am still trying to figure out how to play through the physicality,” Reese said postgame. “I’m kind of used to it because this was happening throughout the season, so I have to just continue to play through it. But honestly, for my teammates, when they’re getting slapped to the floor or knocked off, it’s a little frustrating.”
The reigning WNBA Defensive Player of the Year grabbed 15 rebounds in the loss but did not record any steals or blocks for the first time in these playoffs. She also provided a playoff-high five assists and had two turnovers.
After a back-and-forth start to the game, the Dream took its only lead of the night at the end of the first quarter. Despite scoring only eight points as a team in the second quarter, Atlanta was able to keep the lead within two possessions for much of the game until Golden State pulled away in the fourth quarter.
The series will return to Atlanta on Thursday. Tip-off was moved to 12:30 p.m. ET to allow for the game to be played in State Farm Arena. The Atlanta Hawks home court hosted the Dream’s first two “home” games of the series because it can house 13,500 more fans than the team’s regular home court, the Gateway Center. The Hawks, however, have a game on Thursday night, which they moved back an hour to 8 p.m. ET, so the potential last game of the WNBA Finals will have a midday start – or mid-morning for Golden State fans.
If Atlanta is able to force a Game 7, it will be played in the Chase Center in San Francisco on Saturday at 5 p.m PT.
Be the first to comment