Dream’s uncompetitive first half could come back to haunt them

At the risk of oversimplifying things, the Dream had a humongous, whale of an opportunity Saturday and not only let it get away, but didn’t really give themselves much of a chance to cash in.

They can still rectify matters in the pursuit of their first WNBA championship. However, as their 67-62 Game 4 loss to the Golden State Valkyries at State Farm Arena begins to settle, this one is suitable for ruing.

On this day, the Dream had the chance to go up three games to one in the best-of-seven series after waylaying the Valkyries in Games 2 and 3. Moreover, they were playing in front of a sold-out State Farm crowd primed to unleash decibel-laden fury on Golden State.

Instead, the Dream were outplayed every which way in the first half, taking themselves out of the game before it could get interesting.

“They just came out aggressive and we didn’t come out ready to match that,” Dream forward Rhyne Howard said. “I think they forced us into some untimely decisions and they capitalized off of it.”

The Dream painted themselves into a corner with their uninspired first half, a messy collage of turnovers, lost 50/50 balls and missed shots. In those first two quarters, they fumbled their way into 14 turnovers to Golden State’s four.

This, after averaging 10.1 turnovers per game in their first eight postseason games. It resulted in a 16-5 deficit in points off turnovers in the half.

As the Dream and Valkyries yielded the court for a halftime show by the fur-coated Big Boi, the home team trailed 42-26.

Not unsurprisingly, it was one of the worst halves in WNBA Finals history. The 14 giveaways tied the Finals record for most turnovers in a half, and the Dream became just the second team in Finals history to score fewer than 30 points in a half with 14 turnovers.

“Give them credit — they came out super aggressive,” Dream coach Karl Smesko said. “They were crashing the boards really hard. They were being very physical on defense.”

If you’ve watched basketball for any amount of time, this was predictable. The Valkyries were shoved around in Games 2 and 3, losing both by a combined 176-136. It only stood to reason that, facing the prospect of falling behind three games to one, the visitors from the Bay were going to bring more sourdough bread to the picnic.

“We just really emphasized coming out strong and just setting the tone from the jump,” Valkyries center Kiah Stokes said. “We just wanted to make sure nothing was easy for Atlanta, and I think the last couple games, we kind of allowed them to punch first.”

If this series ultimately goes Golden State’s way, what happened Saturday will be painfully recalled.

The Dream had to know this counterpunch would be thrown, but by playing so far below their standards in the first half, they didn’t give themselves a chance to withstand it.

Had they played the first half with anywhere near the urgency and energy that they did the second half, it’s reasonable to think that the series could be 3-1 in the Dream’s favor and not leveled at two games apiece with home-court advantage now back with Golden State.

Said Smesko: “Really happy with the fight we showed in the second half, but we can’t put ourselves in that position where you’re playing a great defensive team and you’re having to come back from double figures.”

Perhaps it goes without saying, but anyone who is pulling for the Dream and possesses more than a passing familiarity with Atlanta sports history has an uneasy feeling about what just happened.

All is not lost. The Dream can win two of the next three games, though scheduling Game 6 in Atlanta looks like another logistical thicket.