After losing at home earlier in the week, the Dream were hoping for a different result when they went on the road last Friday. Unfortunately, the New York Liberty handed them their 28th loss of the season after yet another poor start. Atlanta dug a hole for themselves in the third quarter, as the Liberty closed out the stanza on a 14-4 run to take a 65-55 lead heading into the final 10 minutes. The Dream refused to go away, however, and an 11-2 run closed the gap to 71-68 with 5:17 to play after a tip-in from Erika Desouza.
Then the bottom fell out. New York responded with an 11-0 run to seal the deal. The final score was 82-71.
“It was a really good matchup for the majority of the game and then, at the end, they kind of just put us away,” said Allison Bales.
The win also clinched a playoff spot for the Liberty, their ninth postseason berth in franchise history. Janel McCarville continued her dominance of Atlanta this season with a 21-point outing on 10-of-15 shooting. She was one of many players who shot a good percentage for New York, as they finished at 52.6 percent from the field as a team.
Betty Lennox paced Atlanta with 28, shooting 6-of-14 from outside the arc. Desouza finished with 10 points, six boards, two assists and two steals. Results of Monday’s home finale against Indiana were unavailable at press time.
SEASON ENDS FRIDAY
The Dream won’t play at Philips Arena again until 2009, but two more road games remain against top Western Conference competition. Atlanta will face Candace Parker, Lisa Leslie and the Los Angeles Sparks on Thursday. The game will tip off at 10:30 p.m. and will be televised on NBATV.
The Sparks are 19-13 at press time this season and have clinched a playoff berth, but they also have an outside chance to take home-court advantage in the Western Conference, so don’t expect them to rest their starters.
Leslie will try to have her way down low and Parker gives L.A. one of the best 1-2 punches in the league. Many experts have deemed the L.A. backcourt to be their greatest weakness. Lennox and Ivory Latta will have to take advantage.
The 2008 season will come to an end on Friday in Seattle. The Storm are also battling for the top spot in the West with L.A. and San Antonio.
Seattle’s Sue Bird is one of the WNBA’s best at the point. She gave Atlanta fits on Sept. 2 when she dropped 21 points, nine assists, five boards and five steals in an 83-69 win.
“She’s a terrific player,” said head coach Marynell Meadors. “She’s just calm. She keeps her team calm. When you have a point guard like that, everyone gets better around her.”
Bagriansky can be reached at jbagriansky@scoreatl.com.
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