ATLANTA — Angel Reese posted 21 points and 12 rebounds as the Atlanta Dream defeated the Golden State Valkyries 97-71 on Wednesday night, taking a 2-1 lead in the WNBA Finals.
Rhyne Howard added 16 points and Naz Hillmon contributed 15 for the Dream, who will host Game 4 on Saturday.
It was Reese’s second consecutive standout performance after recording 30 points and 16 rebounds in Game 2, the Dream’s first-ever Finals victory. She has now registered a double-double in every game of the series.
“It feels good to be in the Finals,” Reese said. “It’s a long season, and you face everyone and push through, but competing at the highest level is what you live for. That’s what the offseason is for. I put in the work for this moment, and I’m happy I could help lead the team to a win. We’re feeling good heading into Saturday.”
With the score tied at 49 in the third quarter, Atlanta reeled off eight straight points, including four from Reese. Golden State pulled within 59-55 on a Tiffany Hayes layup, but the Dream closed the quarter by scoring 12 of the final 14 points.
Atlanta has dominated the third quarter all series, outscoring Golden State 63-35 across the three games.
Leading by 17 in the fourth quarter, Jordin Canada’s breakaway pass intended for Reese went off target, but Reese tipped the ball over her head under the basket to Howard, who drew a foul.
Golden State never recovered. Gabby Williams scored 15 points and Hayes added 14 for the Valkyries.
The game was originally scheduled for Thursday at Gateway Center Arena, the Dream’s primary home venue.
The league coordinated with the Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena to move the next two championship games to the larger arena. Gateway Center seats only 3,500, while State Farm Arena holds more than 17,000 fans.
“We have to protect home court,” Howard said. “We want to give our fans a show. We fought for this arena, so we have to defend it. It’s a big stage. We stole one on the road, but we can’t let them come in and do the same.”
Both Wednesday’s game and Saturday’s Game 4 at State Farm Arena are sold out. The crowd included numerous celebrities, including Ludacris, and former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom said he planned to attend.
The Dream and State Farm Arena offered Kanter Freedom a private suite for his protection. He declined to sit in it and was removed from the game.
Atlanta jumped to a 9-1 lead within the first five minutes. Golden State missed its first eight shots before Aminata Gueye scored the Valkyries’ first basket with 4:39 remaining in the quarter.
Golden State trimmed the deficit to 13-10 before Naz Hillmon hit consecutive three-pointers, followed by one from Reese. Atlanta led 23-15 after the opening quarter.
Atlanta’s hot shooting from beyond the arc continued into the second quarter, extending the lead to 37-26 by the midway mark.
Golden State hung around and trailed just 46-40 at halftime, with the teams combining to shoot 15-of-31 (48%) from three-point range.
That exceeded the combined made three-pointers in the first half of either Game 1 or Game 2.
Reese had 15 points at the break, and WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year Janelle Salaun added 11 for Golden State.
The first two games drew strong ratings. The opener on NBC averaged 2.1 million viewers, the most ever for a Game 1 of the Finals, while Game 2 on USA Network averaged 1.33 million viewers.