Dream drops season’s final home game

T-shirts, Frisbees, mini-basketballs, autographs, even groceries — the Dream gave their fans all those things and more Monday night at Philips Arena.

A victory?

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ALLEN SULLIVAN/aesullivan@ajc.com

Atlanta Dream guard Betty Lennox thanks fans for attending during the season druing the final home game at Philips Arena.

Not even Fan Appreciation Night could produce that from what is now guaranteed to be one of the worst teams in WNBA history.

The score was 81-77, the opponent the Indiana Fever, but those details were overshadowed by the fact that the season’s final home game ended like all but one of the others … with the visitors doing the celebrating.

The Dream lost for the 10th consecutive game and the 29th time in its inaugural season, tying the record loss total the Chicago Sky set two seasons ago. Barring an improbable 2-0 season-ending trip to Los Angeles and Seattle, Atlanta will soon be the losingest team in any of the WNBA’s 12 seasons.

Before leaving the court, Dream players grabbed a handheld microphone and thanked the fans who stuck with them through a 3-29 record overall, 1-16 at home. Scoring leader Betty Lennox apologized for those results.

“Next year we’re going to be a whole lot better. We promise,” Lennox said.

“We want to be a different team,” point guard Ivory Latta said. “We want to be bigger. We want to be stronger.”

They haven’t won in almost two months, since a July 16 road game against the same Fever team that beat them Monday night. Indiana (15-16) probably represented the best chance for Atlanta to end its skid. Los Angeles is 19-13, and Seattle (21-10) is tied for the best record in the league.

The Dream rallied from a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit to take a 73-72 lead when Latta made a free throw with 2 minutes, 8 seconds to play. The lead changed five more times in the next 100 seconds.

But after Tan White put Indiana ahead 78-77 with 28 seconds left, Lennox missed a 3-pointer, and Erika DeSouza missed a put-back. Alison Bales got whistled for a foul on the rebound, and Tamika Catchings hit a free throw to make it a two-point game.

With 9.2 seconds left, the Dream had a chance to tie or take the lead. But Latta’s drive to the basket came up empty, and Bales fouled again going for the rebound, and this time Catchings made both free throws to clinch it.

A subdued murmur came from the crowd, announced at 7,706 tickets distributed but consisting of about a third that many people. But there were no ticket-holders wearing paper bags on their heads, and there were no banners calling for any personnel changes. This was a supportive group, even after a summer of losing.

“You’ve got to support them. This is our team,” said Angela Douglas of Atlanta, who attended all but two of the home games but missed the lone home victory July 5 against Chicago. “We’re new. We’re jelling together. Once we jell, you’ll see something different.”

She plans to be back for season No. 2.

“Definitely,” Douglas said. “Definitely, and bring more people.”