The Atlanta Dream are no strangers to a big win.
At 9-9 on the season, the Dream are currently in eighth place in the league standings, but they hold the potential to beat any team any given night in the WNBA. Any why? It's because they can defend and they can rebound.
They snapped the Connecticut Sun's red hot start and have appeared to have their number ever since. They beat the Seattle Storm on the road, which is the best team in the league right now. They took down the defending WNBA champions, the Minnesota Lynx. Their latest victory came in a 76-70 win over the second-placed Phoenix Mercury on Sunday afternoon.
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Atlanta jumped out to a 27-17 lead after the first quarter and an 11 point lead at half. With the Dream commanding the majority of the game, Phoenix fought back in the fourth outscoring Atlanta 22-11, but they were able to hold on for the 76-70 win. In a balanced offensive showing, Atlanta had five players score in double figures. Tiffany Hayes led Atlanta with 18 points and Brittney Sykes and Renee Montgomery added 13 a piece.
STRAIGHT C A $ H @tiphayes3 #WNBAVote pic.twitter.com/aTS2GM039M
— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) July 8, 2018
It was what Atlanta was able to do defensively that made the difference, especially inside. They held Brittney Griner to 39 percent shooting on the game. Griner still got hers finishing with 18 points but it took 7-18 shooting. Those 11 misses to a player who shoots 54 percent from the field, for the Dream, are golden and make a world of difference.
Atlanta did a great job of forcing Griner off the block into lower percentage shots. A difficult task when playing against one of the most dominant post presences of all time.
"Getting to her early, knowing my scout really well, knowing her tenancies. Just trying to get her off the block as much as possible. She'll get those 15 foot jump shots but I'd rather her take those than two feet in the lane," said Dream forward Elizabeth Williams in a post game press conference. "We tried to frustrate her early. Collectively, I think we did a good job of just disrupting her rhythm."
As one of the top defensive teams in the league, the Dream have embraced it as their identity. They rank fourth in opponents points per game giving up 79.3 a night. They also do a great job of turning teams over, leading the league in turnovers forced at 16 per game. They're also in the top half of rebounding in the league.
These components on the defensive end of the floor are the key reasons they have the ability to beat any team on any given night. "We enjoy playing defense and I think our signature this season has been as a defensive team, trying to be at the top of each defensive category. We take a lot of pride in that," said Williams. "We take a lot of pride in really being disruptive."
On the flip side, offensively, Atlanta averages the fewest points out of all 12 teams at 75.7 points per contest. Their wins come at an average margin of +5.3 points per game, and their highest win margin was an 81-63 win over the Chicago Sky to begin the season. Beyond that, all of their wins have come by six points or less.
Atlanta will look to get above .500 on Wednesday when they go on the road to take on the Washington Mystics at 11:30am ET.
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