WNBA semis winners and losers: Angel Reese proves clutch as Liberty, Aces face elimination after Game 2 losses — SkimNews
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- Atlanta Dream beat the New York Liberty 101-98 in overtime to go up 2-0 in their best-of-five semifinal, putting them one win from their first Finals appearance since 2013.
- Golden State Valkyries edged the Las Vegas Aces 83-81 to take a 2-0 series lead, moving within one win of their first-ever Finals appearance in just their second season.
- Jordin Canada scored 23 points with 8 assists on 9-of-15 shooting for the Dream, her second 20-point playoff game in this series, stepping up while teammate Allisha Gray played just 11 minutes and Rhyne Howard shot 5-of-20 across both games.
- Angel Reese tied her playoff career-high with 23 points and added 7 rebounds and 2 blocks, calmly sinking two free throws with 4.3 seconds left in overtime to seal the Dream's win.
- Breanna Stewart said officials mistakenly told the Liberty they had no reset timeout remaining before a chaotic final sequence; officials disputed that account, saying there was no direct communication with New York about the timeout.
- Veronica Burton hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with under a minute left and added two clutch free throws with six seconds remaining for the Valkyries after going 0-for through three quarters.
- No WNBA team has ever come back from an 0-2 deficit in a best-of-five series, meaning the Aces and Liberty would need to break the trend to keep their streak of five Finals berths in the past four years alive.
Why it matters: With both the Aces and Liberty down 0-2 — a deficit no WNBA team has ever overcome in a best-of-five — the WNBA is likely headed to its first Finals without either franchise since 2021. The Dream are a win from returning since 2013 while the expansion Valkyries could reach theirs in just their second season.
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