Reese scores 23, Hillmon makes
go-ahead basket in OT as Dream beat Liberty 101-98 for a 2-0 lead
[October 08, 2026]
By ALAN COLE
ATLANTA (AP) — Angel Reese scored 23 points, Naz Hillmon made the
go-ahead layup with 20.8 seconds left in overtime and the Atlanta
Dream beat the New York Liberty 101-98 on Wednesday night to take a
2-0 lead in the WNBA semifinals.
Reese scored six of her team's 13 points in overtime. She made two
free throws with 4.3 seconds left after Sabrina Ionescu overthrew a
pass as Atlanta moved within one win of its first WNBA Finals
appearance since 2013.
“I think we did a great job making sure that we were all on the
connected stream," Reese said. "We really stayed together and played
together, and that's how we won.”
Jordin Canada also scored 23 points and had eight assists for the
Dream, who won Game 1 92-82.
Breanna Stewart scored 35 points, including 25 in the first half.
She missed a desperation attempt on the final play after the Liberty
didn't use their reset to advance the ball, with Stewart saying
after the game that officials told them they didn't have one left.
New York hosts Game 3 on Friday.
With the Liberty trailing 86-80 with under two minutes remaining in
regulation, Ionescu cut the deficit in half with a deep 3-pointer.
An Atlanta shot clock violation with 31 seconds remaining opened the
door for the Liberty to get closer, and Stewart hit a quick layup in
traffic to make it 86-85.
After New York fouled to extend the game, Reese knocked down both
free throws to give the Dream an 88-85 advantage with 14.5 seconds
left. Marine Fauthoux knocked down the game-tying 3-pointer with
10.3 seconds to go, boiling the game down to one final Atlanta
possession. Rhyne Howard's midrange floater rimmed out just before
the buzzer, sending the game to overtime.
[to top of second column] |
Atlanta forward Naz Hillmon (00) reacts to her basket against New
York during the first half in Game 2 of the WNBA basketball
semifinals, Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Daniel
Varnado)
“We just had a message that we thought we could be
the best team over the last five minutes, let's start off by
executing the first couple plays," Dream coach Karl Smesko said.
"Everybody was locked in on what those plays were, and they went out
there and executed them.”
Atlanta scored the first five points of overtime before New York
responded with the next eight, giving the Liberty a 96-93 lead.
Canada and Reese scored the next two baskets to flip the advantage
again, only for Stewart to respond with one in a pulsating
back-and-forth extra period.
Hillmon's layup gave Atlanta the lead for good. The Dream forced a
jump ball on New York's first attempt at its final possession, only
for the Liberty to win the tip and get another opportunity before
Ionescu's wayward pass.
“We're not focused on winning three games straight right now,”
Stewart said. “We're focused on winning one game, and that's Friday,
and then we go from there. This group has experience. I've been part
of some crazy series and I have a lot of confidence in our group.”
The Dream won without leading scorer Allisha Gray, who missed the
game with a left hand injury. Izzy Borlase helped soak up her
minutes, and the rookie scored 11 points of the bench.
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