Gimme Five: Fantastic Finishes
To celebrate five seasons in Atlanta, the Dream is compiling various top-five lists from those five seasons. We previously listed the top-five on-the-court moments, the top-five off-the-court moments and the top five individual performances in Dream history. Today, we look at the top five fantastic finishes in team history.
No. 5 � Atlanta 83, Chicago 80 � Aug. 23, 2011
A back-and-forth game between two teams fighting for a playoff spot was tied at 78 in the final minute until an Angel McCoughtry free throw gave the Dream the lead. With the clock ticking down, Chicago�s Sylvia Fowles buried a turnaround jumper with just 6.3 seconds left, putting Chicago back on top, 80-79. But McCoughtry was fouled going to the basket with 2.5 seconds left, and calmly sank both free throws to put Atlanta back ahead. Lindsey Harding then stole the inbounds pass and was fouled, making two more free throws with 0.3 seconds remaining for the final margin.
Box Score
No. 4 � Atlanta 108, Connecticut 103 (OT) � July 7, 2010
Down by four with a minute left in regulation, Angel McCoughtry hit two straight fade-away jumpers to tie the game at 95. It then looked like Shalee Lehning may have won the game with a putback at the buzzer, but the shot came after the horn, sending the game into overtime. In the overtime period, Atlanta was down a bucket late, but McCoughtry hit a tying jumper with 1:04 left, then converted a three-point play with 32.2 seconds left for the lead. The Sun missed a potential tying three-pointer, and two more Dream free throws provided the final margin.
Box Score
No. 3 � Atlanta 94, Connecticut 88 (OT) � Aug. 19, 2011
With Atlanta trailing Connecticut by three points in the closing seconds, Sancho Lyttle hit just her second three-pointer of the season, tying the game at 78 with only 12.2 seconds left. The Sun had a chance to win in regulation, but Angel McCoughtry blocked the potential game-winning shot to force overtime. In the extra period, McCoughtry hit two straight jumpers to turn a one-point lead with just over a minute left into a five-point advantage, and the Dream held on to win by six.
Box Score
No. 2 � Atlanta 72, Washington 70 � Aug. 9, 2011
Trailing by five points (70-65) in the final minute, Angel McCoughtry sank a quick three-point basket to cut the Mystics� lead to two points with 33.9 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, McCoughtry made a steal and fed Armintie Price for a layup to tie the score with 14.7 seconds remaining. With a chance to take the final shot, Washington�s DeMya Walker was called for a double-dribble with 5.6 seconds left, giving the Dream the final possession. Sancho Lyttle capitalized, draining a 13-foot jumper with 0.9 seconds left to cap a 7-0 run to end the game and give the Dream the victory.
Box Score
No. 1 � Atlanta 92, Indiana 90 � Aug. 30, 2011
Atlanta capped a month filled with heart-stopping victories with the most dramatic of them all. Facing the Eastern Conference leaders in Philips Arena, the Dream tied the score at 88 on an Angel McCoughtry three-pointer with 1:39 left. After Erin Phillips put Indiana back up by two, Iziane Castro Marques scored with 1:09 remaining to knot the score again at 90. After each team squandered a chance to take the lead, Indiana had the ball with the clock winding down. But Armintie Price made a steal, drove down the court and fed Sancho Lyttle for the game-winning jumper with only 0.9 seconds left, giving Lyttle her second game-winning buzzer-beater of the month, and the top spot in our countdown.
Box Score
Previous Top FIve Lists
Top Five On-The-Court Moments
Top Five Off-The-Court Moments
Top Five Individual Performances
No. 5 � Atlanta 83, Chicago 80 � Aug. 23, 2011
A back-and-forth game between two teams fighting for a playoff spot was tied at 78 in the final minute until an Angel McCoughtry free throw gave the Dream the lead. With the clock ticking down, Chicago�s Sylvia Fowles buried a turnaround jumper with just 6.3 seconds left, putting Chicago back on top, 80-79. But McCoughtry was fouled going to the basket with 2.5 seconds left, and calmly sank both free throws to put Atlanta back ahead. Lindsey Harding then stole the inbounds pass and was fouled, making two more free throws with 0.3 seconds remaining for the final margin.
Box Score
No. 4 � Atlanta 108, Connecticut 103 (OT) � July 7, 2010
Down by four with a minute left in regulation, Angel McCoughtry hit two straight fade-away jumpers to tie the game at 95. It then looked like Shalee Lehning may have won the game with a putback at the buzzer, but the shot came after the horn, sending the game into overtime. In the overtime period, Atlanta was down a bucket late, but McCoughtry hit a tying jumper with 1:04 left, then converted a three-point play with 32.2 seconds left for the lead. The Sun missed a potential tying three-pointer, and two more Dream free throws provided the final margin.
Box Score
No. 3 � Atlanta 94, Connecticut 88 (OT) � Aug. 19, 2011
With Atlanta trailing Connecticut by three points in the closing seconds, Sancho Lyttle hit just her second three-pointer of the season, tying the game at 78 with only 12.2 seconds left. The Sun had a chance to win in regulation, but Angel McCoughtry blocked the potential game-winning shot to force overtime. In the extra period, McCoughtry hit two straight jumpers to turn a one-point lead with just over a minute left into a five-point advantage, and the Dream held on to win by six.
Box Score
No. 2 � Atlanta 72, Washington 70 � Aug. 9, 2011
Trailing by five points (70-65) in the final minute, Angel McCoughtry sank a quick three-point basket to cut the Mystics� lead to two points with 33.9 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, McCoughtry made a steal and fed Armintie Price for a layup to tie the score with 14.7 seconds remaining. With a chance to take the final shot, Washington�s DeMya Walker was called for a double-dribble with 5.6 seconds left, giving the Dream the final possession. Sancho Lyttle capitalized, draining a 13-foot jumper with 0.9 seconds left to cap a 7-0 run to end the game and give the Dream the victory.
Box Score
No. 1 � Atlanta 92, Indiana 90 � Aug. 30, 2011
Atlanta capped a month filled with heart-stopping victories with the most dramatic of them all. Facing the Eastern Conference leaders in Philips Arena, the Dream tied the score at 88 on an Angel McCoughtry three-pointer with 1:39 left. After Erin Phillips put Indiana back up by two, Iziane Castro Marques scored with 1:09 remaining to knot the score again at 90. After each team squandered a chance to take the lead, Indiana had the ball with the clock winding down. But Armintie Price made a steal, drove down the court and fed Sancho Lyttle for the game-winning jumper with only 0.9 seconds left, giving Lyttle her second game-winning buzzer-beater of the month, and the top spot in our countdown.
Box Score
Previous Top FIve Lists
Top Five On-The-Court Moments
Top Five Off-The-Court Moments
Top Five Individual Performances