Canada, Bonner lead Dream over Liberty in Game 1 of semifinals
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When the Dream come out for the second half, that’s when the danger starts.
The Dream made a statement to open the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs with a 92-82 win against the Liberty at State Farm Arena.
The hosts came into the second half with a new surge of energy to put their opponents away, led on both ends of the floor by Jordin Canada and DeWanna Bonner. The Dream, who outscored the Liberty 32-15 in the third quarter, entered the fourth quarter with a 14-point lead.
They scored 29 points off New York’s turnovers through three quarters and finished with a WNBA playoff-record-tying 32 points off turnovers.
This matchup required all hands on deck after Atlanta’s Allisha Gray suffered a left hand injury in the first half and was ruled out for the rest of the game.
The first half was a tough one for the Dream. Shooting 34% from the field, the Dream struggled to establish a run as the Liberty found their rhythm early, especially from the 3-point line.
Still, the Dream stayed on the Liberty’s heels going into the second half. The Liberty attempted to climb back within the last few minutes of the game, but the Dream were able close out Game 1 in dominant fashion. Game 2 is at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at State Farm Arena.
Key moments
Canada anchored the defense in key moments during Sunday’s matchup, but her offensive prowess was the star of the show. Near the start of the third quarter, Canada opened with a 3-pointer off an Angel Reese rebound to give the Dream the lead. Twelve of Canada’s team-high 25 points came in the third quarter alone, and she shot 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.
Why was this key?
It shifted the momentum completely as the rally towels swung in universal support after a 19-5 run for the Dream in the third quarter. A whole new Dream team came out of the locker room after halftime, bringing a different surge into the building.
Top performers
Dream
- Jordin Canada: 25 points, one rebounds, four assists
- DeWanna Bonner: 23 points, nine rebounds, two assists
- Angel Reese: 17 points, seven rebounds, two assists
- Rhyne Howard: 16 points, eight rebounds, eight assists
Liberty
- Sabrina Ionescu: 27 points, four rebounds, one assist
- Breanna Stewart: 19 points, two rebounds, three assists
- Jonquel Jones: 12 points, 11 rebounds, four assists
Highlight of the game
There were too many plays from the Dream’s two leading scorers to choose from, but here are two worth highlighting.
Canada’s offense was mentioned, but her presence defensively couldn’t go unnoticed. With a little over four minutes left in the first quarter, she put herself in perfect position to grab a steal and make a driving layup. This wouldn’t be the last time you’d see Canada getting active down the court for more open looks.
Anchoring the offense off the bench and putting her veteran experience on full display, it’s impossible to ignore a Bonner 3-pointer to rile the crowd up and extend the Dream’s lead.
Quotable
“I feel like I’ve been counted out a lot this season and just overall in my career. I just try to come out and do what my team needs me to do, whether that’s defensively set the tone, being aggressive, finding ways to deflect and cause chaos. It don’t matter about height. It’s all about the heart that you have. So when I go out there, I know I’m one of the best players on the floor, and that’s how I act, and that’s how I’ve been acting consistently throughout this whole season.” - Jordin Canada on her mentality on the floor throughout the season
“She (Canada) just brings all the energy. She’s the head of the team on defense and offense. So when she gets one, then it gets everyone else going. I’m just super proud of her, and I’m excited to see what she’s going to do the rest of the series. But you know, it’s a long way. But we go where JC goes.” - DeWanna Bonner on Canada’s performance.
“DB (Bonner) got into us, and you know we said coming out into the third quarter that we talk about a second-half surge in the first three minutes of the game of the second half is going to be really important, and so we came out ready to go. I thought it started defensively with our energy. We were able to get stops and then get out and transition, which is what we do best. And then from there, we kind of were able to just separate a little bit and finish off in the second half.” - Canada on the momentum shift in the third quarter
“I give the credit to the players. They get in the locker room and they talk about things before I get in there, and it’s one of those things when I start talking about adjustments. I can tell they’ve already talked about the same adjustments, so it makes it a lot easier when you go in there when you have a team that they get together they figure things out. You come in, and maybe you’re just emphasizing something that they saw on the floor as well, and then we try to go out and play. However we played in the first half, we try to play even better in the second half.” - Dream coach Karl Smesko on adjustments made in the second half.
“She has a lot of enthusiasm when she plays. But she also has a calming presence about her. Like she knows when the emotions get ramped up, she can get everybody settled and locked into the next play…She’s making a huge difference for us, and we’re going to need more of it going forward." - Smesko on Bonner’s presence and performance