Allisha Gray Hits 5 of 7 From Three as the Dream Force the First Game 7 in WNBA Finals History

Photo: Official WNBA headshot (cdn.wnba.com).

The Atlanta Dream beat the Golden State Valkyries 80-69 in Game 6 of the WNBA Finals on Thursday afternoon at State Farm Arena, tying the series 3-3 and sending the Finals to the first Game 7 in league history, per AP. Allisha Gray scored 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting, hit 5 of her 7 threes and added 6 rebounds, 3 blocks and 2 steals in 32 minutes.

Atlanta won this one with the three-point shot, the one weapon that had been missing for five games. The Dream made 13 of 30 from deep. In Games 1 through 5 they made 30 of 121, about 25 percent, by our count. Golden State made 7 of 27. That is an 18-point gap from three in an 11-point game.

Game 7 is Saturday at 8 p.m. ET at Chase Center in San Francisco, on USA, Peacock and CNBC.

The first quarter did the work

Atlanta scored 32 points in the first quarter and led 32-15 after 10 minutes. The Dream made 6 threes in that quarter alone, per the ESPN play-by-play, which matches their total for all of Game 5 and beats their totals in Games 1 and 4. By 4:21 of the second quarter it was 44-19, a 25-point lead. It was 46-26 at the half.

The rest of the afternoon was Golden State chasing. The Valkyries won the second half 43-34 and got the margin down to 77-69 with 1:15 to play, by the ESPN play-by-play. Atlanta led for 98 percent of the game, per ESPN.

Gray and Howard were the whole perimeter

Gray and Rhyne Howard combined for 44 points on 14-of-23 shooting and 9-of-13 from three. Howard had 21 on 6-of-11 with 4 threes and went 5 for 5 at the line in 38 minutes.

The rest of the Dream shot 13 of 39 and 4 of 17 from deep, by our count. Angel Reese had 15 points, 14 rebounds and 6 assists, but went 5 of 18 and turned it over 6 times. Jordin Canada scored 10 on 4-of-13.

Gray also had 3 blocks and 2 steals, and Atlanta finished with 8 blocks to Golden State's 2.

The turnover ledger, one more time

Before Game 6, the case for this series was simple. The team that won the points-off-turnovers column had won all five games, and the team with fewer turnovers had won all five. Outside of turnover points, Atlanta had outscored Golden State in every game.

| Game | Result | GSV pts off TO | ATL pts off TO | GSV other pts | ATL other pts | |---|---|---|---|---|---| | 1 | GSV 68-64 | 17 | 8 | 51 | 56 | | 2 | ATL 79-65 | 13 | 24 | 52 | 55 | | 3 | ATL 97-71 | 7 | 22 | 64 | 75 | | 4 | GSV 67-62 | 16 | 8 | 51 | 54 | | 5 | GSV 64-55 | 21 | 6 | 43 | 49 | | 6 | ATL 80-69 | 12 | 18 | 57 | 62 |

Other points are total points minus points off turnovers, by our count from the ESPN box scores.

One rule held. Atlanta won points off turnovers 18-12, so the winner of that column is now 6-0 in the series. Atlanta also won the other-points column by 5 and has now won it in all six games, by a combined 33 points, by our count.

The other rule broke. Atlanta turned it over 15 times and Golden State 11 times, and the Dream won anyway. The difference was what each team did with the giveaways. Golden State scored 12 points on 15 Atlanta turnovers, 0.8 a turnover. Atlanta scored 18 on 11 Golden State turnovers, about 1.6 a turnover, by our count. In Game 5, Golden State had turned 17 Dream turnovers into 21 points.

The Valkyries still forced 10 steals. They did not run off them. Golden State had 10 fast-break points.

Golden State's Game 6 numbers

Gabby Williams scored 26 for Golden State, on 8-of-22. The rest of the Valkyries shot 14 of 48. Veronica Burton went 2 of 13 and 0 of 6 from three. Tiffany Hayes was the efficient one, 15 points on 6-of-10.

Two lineup numbers stand out. Kiah Stokes played 20 minutes, scored 0 and was minus-25. Laeticia Amihere played 20 minutes off the bench and was plus-14 with 10 rebounds. The comeback ran through the bench, and Golden State won the offensive glass 9 to 5 and went 18 of 21 at the line.

Golden State shot 22 of 70 on Thursday, 31 percent. Atlanta shot 13 of 30 from three, 43 percent.

What the series numbers show before Game 7

The winner of the points-off-turnovers column is 6-0 in the series. Atlanta has scored more points outside of turnovers in all six games, by a combined 33, by our count. Golden State's three wins came with points-off-turnover edges of 9, 8 and 15. In Atlanta's three wins, that edge went to the Dream.

Game 7 is at Chase Center, Golden State's home floor.

What is at stake

Golden State is in its second season and is chasing the franchise's first title, per AP. Thursday's game tipped at 12:30 p.m. ET, a weekday matinee, and still drew 17,099, per ESPN.

The Finals went to a best-of-seven format in 2025. Two years in, the league has its first Game 7.

Sources

• ESPN: Game 6 box score, Dream 80, Valkyries 69. Oct. 29, 2026. Quarter scores, shooting, turnovers, points off turnovers, steals, blocks, fast-break points, player lines, plus-minus, largest lead, percent led, attendance and play-by-play.
• ESPN: How the Dream's fast start forced the WNBA Finals to its first Game 7. Oct. 29, 2026. First Game 7 in Finals history and the Game 7 setup at Chase Center.
• ESPN: 2026 WNBA playoffs schedule. Game 7 on Saturday, Oct. 31 at 8 p.m. ET on USA, Peacock and CNBC.
• ESPN: Game 1 box score, Game 2, Game 3, Game 4, Game 5. Turnovers, points off turnovers and three-point shooting for Games 1 to 5.
• WNBA: WNBA Finals expand to best-of-seven beginning in 2025. Format history.
• AP: Atlanta Dream force a Game 7 in the WNBA Finals by beating Golden State Valkyries 80-69. Oct. 29, 2026. Result and the first Game 7 in Finals history.
• AP: Scheduling shouldn't overshadow Game 6 of the WNBA Finals. Golden State in its second year, chasing its first title; Game 6 as the potential first Game 7 decider.

Figures marked "by our count" are the desk's own math from the linked box scores.