Gray scores 19, Jones 17 and Dream cruise past short-handed Liberty 78-62

COLLEGE PARK, Ga. (AP) — Allisha Gray scored 19 points, Brionna Jones added 17 and the Atlanta Dream dominated the short-handed New York Liberty 78-62 on Saturday to set a franchise record with their 24th win of the season.

The Dream started the day with a one-game lead over the Liberty for the second seed in the playoffs and never gave the defending WNBA champions a chance to pull even.

Atlanta took charge early, opening a 12-4 lead and making it 24-14 after one quarter. The lead reached 26 late in the third quarter before New York went on a 15-0 run, but the Liberty got no closer than 11.

Naz Hillmon had 11 points for Atlanta (24-13), which has won 9 of 11 games and tied the season series at 2-2, the home team winning each time.

Kennedy Burke scored 13 points for New York (22-15), which had only eight players available. Breanna Stewart is still out with a bruised knee and Sabrina Ionescu, who missed the game with a foot issue, is day to day. Jonquel Jones added 11 points and Emma Meesseman had 10.

Atlanta won the rebounding advantage by nine and had 21 second-chance points, compared to 7 for New York. The Dream also turned 13 Liberty turnovers into 18 points. Atlanta had just five giveaways.

___

AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Murder trial in 2001 death of UGA student Tara Baker pushed to next year

The trial of Edrick Faust, accused of murder in the 2001 killing of University of Georgia law student Tara Baker, has been pushed back until early next year.

Run or hide? Coastal Georgia’s newest hurricane preparedness quandary

Coastal Georgians evacuate inland to avoid winds and flooding from Atlantic hurricanes. Powerful storms crossing overland from the Gulf complicate that old playbook.