Dream’s Winning Streak Snapped in 77-66 Loss to Valkyries

Atlanta’s four-game winning streak came to a halt on Wednesday night as the Golden State Valkyries pulled away early and held on late for a 77-66 victory, dealing the Eastern Conference’s top team its first loss in nearly two weeks.

A Slow Start Dug Too Deep a Hole

The Dream looked sharp out of the gate, scoring on each of their first three possessions, but the offense stalled hard from there. Atlanta managed just 27 points in the first half — its lowest first-half output of the season — while shooting only 30.3% from the field. The Valkyries, by contrast, were nearly unstoppable, connecting on 55.2% of their shots and an eye-popping 53.3% from beyond the arc.

The Dream’s perimeter shooting was a particular problem in the opening half, as Atlanta hit just 1 of 10 attempts from 3-point range. Golden State capitalized, building a lead that ballooned to as many as 26 points and carrying a commanding cushion into the second half.

Things didn’t get much easier in the third quarter, when Atlanta’s struggles compounded — the Dream picked up nearly as many fouls as points during a stretch midway through the period. The night took a further hit when forward Allisha Gray went down with an upper-body injury that ultimately ruled her out for the rest of the game.

Bench Spark Fuels Furious Fourth-Quarter Push

Down big and searching for answers, Head Coach Karl Smesko turned to his reserves — and they delivered. Atlanta’s bench unit outscored Golden State’s 26-14 on the night, with all five available bench players logging at least 11 minutes. Guards Indya Nivar and Sika Kone each posted a team-best +14 plus-minus, the only positive marks for any Dream player.

That energy crystallized in the fourth quarter, when Atlanta held the Valkyries scoreless for more than half the period and ripped off a 21-6 run to cut the deficit to single digits. The Dream shot 10-for-15 over the final 10 minutes — comfortably their most efficient stretch of the game — and briefly had the building believing a comeback was within reach.

“In the fourth quarter, we brought in players off the bench, and that gave us a lot of energy,” Smesko said. “We made a run that got us back in the game and gave us a chance to try to pull something off. Give the Valkyries credit. They hit a couple of 3-pointers to kind of close it out.”

Golden State did just enough down the stretch, answering the Dream’s run with a handful of timely triples to put the game away.

Okot Continues Breakout Stretch

Rookie center Madina Okot led the way in the rally, finishing with a team-high 16 points and five rebounds while continuing to build on a strong recent run of form. Just two days earlier, the No. 13 overall pick out of South Carolina set a career high with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting in Atlanta’s win over Toronto — and she carried that momentum straight into Wednesday’s game, anchoring the paint on both ends.

Atlanta dominated the interior all night, outscoring Golden State 42-22 in the paint and winning the rebounding battle 34-32, even as the rest of the offense sputtered.

“It’s just staying ready and being ready whenever my team needs me and bringing whatever I have to bring to help my team win,” Okot said.

Okot, a 6’6″ Kenyan import who didn’t pick up basketball until age 16, has quickly emerged as a steady source of interior scoring for Atlanta’s bench — exactly the kind of frontcourt punch the Dream were hoping for when they used a first-round pick on her back in April.

Angel Reese added to her case for Most Improved with another double-double, finishing with 10 points and 12 rebounds, though she acknowledged the shots simply weren’t falling for Atlanta as a whole.

“I think it was just a little bit of everything,” Reese said. “We did get the shots that we wanted. We were able to get shots that we like to take a lot; we just didn’t hit them tonight.”

Forward Rhyne Howard led all starters in scoring with 12 points and added three assists in a team-high 31 minutes. Gray and guard Jordin Canada each chipped in 8 points before Gray’s night was cut short by injury.

Up Next

Atlanta and Golden State will square off again on Friday night in a rematch at Chase Center in San Francisco, giving the Dream a quick chance to regroup and respond.