‘She set the tone:’ Dream’s Angel Reese’s historic night delivers big result

SAN FRANCISCO — “Generational.”

“Superior.”

Two words that Dream guard Jordin Canada and coach Karl Smesko used to describe the night that forward Angel Reese had on Monday night.

Those two words may not be enough to completely paint the picture of the spark Reese provided just a couple of days after their 68-64 loss to the Valkyries in Game 1 on Saturday.

She finished the first half of Game 1 with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting. She attempted just two shots in the second half and vowed to come back more assertive in Game 2.

“I was hungry,” Reese said of the feeling she entered Monday’s game with.

“I wanted one. I think we let one slip away, and you can’t do that, especially on the road, where this is a good environment and a good team, and we all came together and were pissed.

“We felt disappointed. We felt embarrassed, and we didn’t like the outcome of that last game, and we didn’t want another one to let slip.”

Reese and the Dream didn’t let the Valkyries slip back into the game after a strong third quarter where they finished on an 18-4 run over nearly six minutes.

That run was sparked by Reese, who refused to let the physicality from the Valkyries’ post players stop her from attacking the rim. She promised that pregame and she delivered with a 30-point, 16-rebound performance, becoming the youngest player to ever record such a double-double in a playoff game.

Reese became one of just six players to record 30-plus points and 15-plus rebounds in a playoff game. She is one of three to do so in a Finals game, joining Liberty’s Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones.

“She was definitely way more aggressive,” Valkyries center Kiah Stokes said. “She had a great game, but we’ve got to do a better job, and that’s all around. Just feel like we’re all kind of having our way, so I think just overall we need to be more aggressive defensively”

It didn’t matter whether the Atlanta forward had one defender or two. She decisively finished at the rim, sometimes with acrobatic moves.

She also demanded the ball, refusing to allow the Dream’s offense to stagnate. Reese wanted to generate offense by any means, including a momentum-shifting transition play with 4:49 to play in the third quarter.

With a full head of steam, she took a pass in transition from Allisha Gray. She didn’t hesitate as she split a pair of Valkyries defenders before going to her left. She went up for the layup, finished the play and drew a foul in the process.

Her three-point play gave the Dream a 45-42 lead and they never trailed for the remainder of the game.

“I think I let the team down last game by only getting two shot attempts (in the second half), and that was on me,” Reese said when asked about her aggressiveness in demanding the ball.

“I wasn’t aggressive enough, and I said that it wasn’t anything that they did. It was just me. I think I got a little lax. I didn’t take advantage of the opportunities, and Karl always talks about the screen quality, and I think that also had helped me a lot. When I can get and set good screens, belly on body, and pick-and-roll and find my spots, I think that makes it a lot easier too.

“And I don’t realize it in the moment, but now, looking at this game and being able to put a complete game together, it just goes to show Karl’s right.”

The Dream eventually stretched that lead to one as many as 21 points before the Valkyries trimmed it back to 14.