DREAM BEAT: Atlanta uses third quarter run to defeat San Antonio

The Atlanta Dream (8-3) used a late third quarter run to sweep the season series against the San Antonio Silver Stars (3-6) by a score of 90-83 at Phillips Arena. Forward Sancho Lyttle had 24 points and 12 rebounds, while MVP candidate Angel McCoughtry scored 23 points in the win. Six Dream players were in double figures and Atlanta withstood a late Star’s push to earn a much needed win. Atlanta, losers of the past three out of four games, looked like the team that started the season on a 6-0 winning streak.
After both teams traded points back and forth for much of the contest, the Dream opened up the game by ending the third quarter on a 17-2 run. The run began at the 5:42 mark of the period. "Well it was our defense, and our rebounding," head coach Marynell Meadors commented on the key third quarter run, "We pushed the ball and we had people step up for us, Sancho Lyttle was absolutely outstanding in that third quarter." Lyttle had 11 points in the third quarter, leading the Dream run that gave Atlanta a 65-53 lead going into the fourth quarter. "Once you start rolling, you keep going until they stop you," commented Lyttle, "We always have a run every time we play, but no one knows when it’s going to stop."
The game marked the return of former Dream star Chamique Holdsclaw. Holdsclaw requested a trade from the Dream after last season after a falling out with coach Meadors and overall Dream management. Holdsclaw was held to only 2 of 9 shooting and five points in the first 3 quarters; she would finish with 15 points in her return to Atlanta. The Stars didn’t go away quietly with Edwige Lawson-Wade hitting a three-pointer with 28.7 seconds left in the game, cutting the Dream lead to 3. McCoughtry would convert 2 free throws with 24 seconds left and Star’s center, Michelle Snow, would turn the ball over with 7.6 seconds left in the game to secure the victory for the Dream. Free throws have been a problem for the Dream in the past, ranking the team last in the league with 64.7 percent shooting from the line. Today, the Dream improved to 76.7 percent from the line and late free throws clinched the win for the Dream.
Following the 91-76 loss to the New York Liberty, Atlanta dropped to second in the Eastern Conference, and the win against the Silver Star appears to demonstrate that the Dream is back on track and working to remain an elite team in the WNBA. "We can’t take this win, as a win putting us over the hump, we got to go until we get to the end of the season," stated Lyttle.
The Dream improved to 8-3 on the season and look to regain the top stop in the Eastern Conference Tuesday night against Chicago. Tip-off is scheduled for 8