Angel Reese's 30 and 16 Give the Dream Their First WNBA Finals Win

Photo: WNBA.com. Angel Reese, Atlanta Dream center.

Angel Reese put up 30 points and 16 rebounds Monday night, and the Atlanta Dream beat the Golden State Valkyries 79-65 at Chase Center for the franchise's first win in 11 WNBA Finals games. Both teams made 21 field goals and seven 3-pointers, so Atlanta's 14-point margin came at the free-throw line, 30-of-35 against 16-of-19. The series is 1-1 heading to Atlanta.

Same makes, different trips

Atlanta shot 33.9 percent from the floor. Golden State shot 34.4. The Valkyries fouled 23 times and the Dream 18. Tiffany Hayes and Veronica Burton each finished with five. Reese went 9-of-11 at the line, Allisha Gray 7-of-8, and Jordin Canada and DeWanna Bonner each went 5-of-6.

The third quarter is where the gap opened. Atlanta made 4 of 16 shots in the period and still won it 21-9, because it went 12-for-12 at the line. On the other end, Golden State missed 11 of its 15 shots, and the Dream did not commit a foul that sent anyone to the stripe, per the team. That is 12 free throws to none in a quarter where Atlanta made four baskets. The lead went from 39-37 at the half to 60-46 after three.

Howard with four fouls

Rhyne Howard picked up her fourth foul with 4:14 left in the first half and played only 1:30 of the second quarter, per Yahoo Sports. Karl Smesko had her on the floor to open the half, and she picked off two Gabby Williams passes in the first 57 seconds.

Howard never got the fifth. She finished with six steals, a Finals record, while scoring five points on 2-of-7 shooting. By The Dyme's count from the Yahoo Sports play log and the official box, all three of Williams' turnovers ended in Howard's hands. Williams went 3-of-15.

Bonner was the other half of it. She had four steals, all after halftime, and zero fouls in 19:57. Two of them came 17 seconds apart early in the fourth, on passes from Burton and Cecilia Zandalasini, and the first one put Bonner at the line for a 64-46 lead. Howard and Bonner are the second pair of teammates in Finals history to each record at least four steals in a game, joining Taj McWilliams-Franklin and Nykesha Sales of the 2004 Connecticut Sun. In Game 1, Bonner was minus-13 in 14 minutes. Monday she was plus-12.

Turnovers and fast breaks

Golden State turned it over 19 times, eight in the third quarter alone, and Atlanta turned those into 24 points. The Dream won the fast-break column 19-0. In Game 1 they had eight points off turnovers. In the regular season they led the league at 18.1 a game.

"They are trying to cut off our driving lanes, be there in the gaps, making us make different decisions than we normally are used to," Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase said. Kiah Stokes played 30:23 without taking a shot. Stokes still had 11 rebounds and four blocks, and Golden State was minus-14 with her on the floor.

Reese asked for it

"I need the ball! I need the ball!" Reese told her teammates, per the AP. In Game 1 she scored 11 on 5-of-6 in the first quarter and went 0-for-5 the rest of the night. Monday she had 15 on 6-of-9 at the half and 24 and 11 through three, then finished 10-of-16 with four offensive rebounds, three assists and two blocks. She is the third player with 30 and 15 in a Finals game, after Jonquel Jones in 2019 and Breanna Stewart in 2020, and the youngest, per the league.

The fouls are still there. Reese finished with five again, which by The Dyme's count makes four times in seven playoff games she has reached five. She carried three through the half and none came in the third quarter, per the team. She played 33:48.

What Golden State takes home

The Valkyries' bench outscored Atlanta's 33-11, and they still lost by 14. Hayes scored 14 and was minus-18. Kaila Charles hit three 3-pointers and was minus-19. The starters scored 32 combined. "We shot terribly," Burton said. "We missed shots that we make all the time." Golden State shot 7-of-24 from three.

It was the Valkyries' first loss in regulation since a 73-70 defeat at Chicago on Aug. 21. Game 3 is Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET at a sold-out State Farm Arena, with Game 4 there on Saturday.

Photo: Atlanta Dream / WNBA.com. Angel Reese drives on Cecilia Zandalasini during Game 2 of the WNBA Finals at Chase Center, Oct. 19, 2026.

Sources

• AP via WNBA.com: Game 2 recap (79-65 final, Reese 30 and 16 and "I need the ball" quote, Howard Finals-record six steals, Gray 18, Canada 13 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds, first Finals win after 0-10, third player with 30 and 15 after Jones 2019 and Stewart 2020, Reese 10-of-16, Williams 3-of-15, Valkyries 34.4 percent and 7-of-24 from three, Burton quote, 24 points off 19 turnovers, 8 points off turnovers in Game 1, first regulation loss since 73-70 at Chicago Aug. 21, Game 3 Wednesday at State Farm Arena). Oct. 19, 2026. Also at AP News.
• Atlanta Dream: Dream Wins Its First-Ever Finals Game (39-37 halftime lead with Howard at four fouls and Reese at three, 60-46 after three, third quarter 4-of-16 and 12-for-12 at the line, Golden State 11 misses in 15 shots, no fouls sending Golden State to the line in the third, Reese 24 and 11 through three, 64-46 in the opening minute of the fourth, sold-out State Farm Arena). Oct. 19, 2026.
• Yahoo Sports (Grant Afseth): Rhyne Howard Breaks WNBA Finals Steals Record (Howard foul times and 1:30 in the second quarter, steal-by-steal log including two Williams passes in the first 57 seconds of the second half, Bonner's four second-half steals 17 seconds apart in the fourth, Howard and Bonner joining McWilliams-Franklin and Sales of the 2004 Sun, 14 steals, fast breaks 19-0, eight third-quarter turnovers, 21-9 third quarter, Nakase and Smesko quotes). Oct. 20, 2026.
• WNBA official box score, Game 2 (21 field goals and seven 3-pointers each, free throws 30-of-35 and 16-of-19, fouls 18 and 23, individual minutes, fouls, steals, turnovers and plus-minus, bench and starter points) and WNBA.com game page. Oct. 19, 2026.
• WNBA.com: Game 2 live blog (15 points on 6-of-9 at the half, youngest player with 30 and 15 in a Finals game). Oct. 19, 2026.
• Atlanta Dream: Dream trio earns 2026 All-Defensive honors (league-best 18.1 points off turnovers per game). Oct. 15, 2026.
• Yahoo Sports: As Dream's search for first WNBA Finals win continues (Reese 11 on 5-of-6 in the Game 1 first quarter, fifth foul for the third time in six playoff games). Oct. 18, 2026.
• Golden State Valkyries: WNBA Finals Game 2 Preview (Bonner minus-13 in 14 minutes in Game 1, Atlanta's seven-player rotation). Oct. 19, 2026.