Rhyne Howard #10 of the Atlanta Dream drives to the basket during the game against the Minnesota Lynx on July 18, 2023 at Gateway Center Arena at College Park in Atlanta, Georgia. Copyright 2023 NBAE (Photo by Dale Zanine/NBAE via Getty Images)

Atlanta Closed Out Game On 12-5 Run Led by Howard

By: Jameelah Johnson

What was once a 22-point lead dwindled down to a one-point lead and finished with the Atlanta Dream (12-8) beating the Minnesota Lynx (9-12) 82-73 for their seventh consecutive win.

Atlanta wasted no time in setting a tone against Minnesota at Gateway Center Arena as they came out of the gate on a 15-4 run led by Nia Coffey, “I just really wanted to make sure I brought the energy, especially coming in the second half of the season. And I just thought I would start strong.”

The Dream’s Rhyne Howard had 11 points in the first quarter, leading her team, “I just want to win. So by any means necessary, I’m going to do what I need to do for my team.”

“Minnesota’s a good team, there’s no doubt about that. A team that’s been playing well as of late. So I’m happy that we were able to come out and get a win” said Dream’s head coach Tanisha Wright following the nail-biting win.

The Dream had a record-setting first half for most threes made in a game for the 2023 season with 12 total triples.

It was truly a tale of two halves in this matchup. Minnesota outscored Atlanta 22-11 in the third quarter. They got to the line and converted for 17 points from the stripe.

Get tickets for the next Atlanta Dream home game against the Connecticut Sun – SAT 7/22 – 1:00 p.m. ET

“So we just have to be more mature in that way,” Coach Wright commented that the offensive struggles might have contributed to Atlanta’s defensive lapses during that period. “Where, when our shots aren’t falling, that we can still count on our defense to get stops because eventually, our shots will come back to us and they’ll fall.”

Atlanta’s AD Durr gave a spark off the bench with 13 points on 4-6 shooting and 3-5 from three, including two impactful and-one plays.  Coach Wright remarked that the team knows what AD can do, “I thought they did a really good job. They gave us a burst of energy that I think was needed at that time. So we expect that of AD.”

Minnesota pulled it to within one in the final quarter behind Napheesa Collier. She finished with 35 points and grabbed nine rebounds. Kayla McBride led the Lynx with 12 rebounds

Howard finished with 21 points, scoring seven pivotal points in the final moments of the game and being emotive with an emphatic yell on the floor. “That was a crucial point in the game, getting that and-1. And so I just felt like letting all that frustration out.” She also dished out seven assists.

Nia Coffey had her first double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Atlanta travels to Connecticut to face the Sun at 11:30am ET on Thursday, July 20.