Smesko calls missed contact on Reese "ridiculous" — SkimNews
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- Karl Smesko backed Angel Reese and accused officials of missing a "ridiculous" amount of contact on her during the Atlanta Dream's 64-55 Game 5 loss to the Golden State Valkyries, a defeat that put Atlanta in a 3-2 series hole; he added, "You can't be at this level and make that many mistakes."
- Smesko also said officials missed double dribbles and travel calls against the Valkyries, pushing back on excuses for the contact: "I'm kind of tired of some of the excuses that I'm hearing."
- Angel Reese finished Game 5 with seven points on 2-of-8 shooting and 3-of-4 free throws while being called for four personal fouls — the first back-to-back games with two or fewer field goals of her career and her second consecutive single-digit scoring stretch, in 2024.
- Reese said the officiating "definitely took a big turn" once Atlanta went up 2-1; in Game 4 she had eight points on 2-of-12 shooting, four made free throws on six attempts and four personal fouls.
- Atlanta Dream attempted 116 free throws over the first four games (29.0 per game) and became the second team in WNBA history to attempt at least 25 in three straight Finals games (Games 2, 3 and 4), but managed only 14 attempts in Game 5 — its postseason low — while going 11-of-14.
- Atlanta Dream hit 29.2% of its shots, the fourth lowest by any team in a WNBA Finals game, and 23.5% in the paint, the worst by any team this postseason; the Valkyries' 64 points were the fewest in a Finals win since the Sacramento Monarchs in 2005, and the Dream's 55 the fewest in a Finals game since the Mercury in Game 3 of the 2021 Finals.
- Natalie Nakase said that physicality is expected at this stage of the Finals, calling both teams defensive-minded and saying both "have dogs," while Smesko conceded there are things "on us, like we're missing shots we should make."
Why it matters: Atlanta shot 11-of-14 from the line in Game 5, so the free-throw collapse — from 29.0 attempts per game across the first four games to 14 in Game 5 — was about trips to the line, not poor shooting. That gives Reese and Smesko's claim that officiating shifted after the 2-1 lead its strongest statistical footing, with Nakase's physicality defense unanswered.
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