Nobody seems to have an answer for where the Dream went while recently losing nine of 11 games, but after blowing out the Shock 92-76 on Friday night, they appear to be back on track — and looking a bit like a locomotive after their second consecutive blowout win.
Center Erika de Souza scored 21 points, and just hours after signing a contract extension, forward Sancho Lyttle scored 14 of her 17 in the first half.
The Dream (19-14) overwhelmed the Shock (12-21) with a 56-32 scoring edge in the paint and a 48-34 rebounding bulge. More impressive, for the second consecutive game, the Dream played as if binging on energy drinks.
The Dream closed the first quarter with a 6-1 run and then crushed Tulsa 24-6 in the second for a 47-25 halftime lead.
So, where did these ladies go on their recent vacations?
“We just went through a bad spell. Every team has one every year,” coach Michael Cooper said. “This team is notorious for having it toward the end. I liked our energy to start the game, and our defensive schemes.”
Forward Aneika Henry made her third consecutive start for leading scorer Angel McCoughtry, and for the second consecutive outing she played big with 10 points and a 12 rebounds.
After putting up career highs of 15 points and 12 rebounds in Wednesday’s 96-82 rout of the Mercury, Henry in the first quarter alone tied de Souza’s franchise record for rebounds in a period with 11.
She also helped bother Tulsa shooters into a 24-for-72 (33.3 percent) night.
With only Sunday’s regular-season finale between the Dream and their sixth postseason berth in seven seasons, de Souza — who added 12 rebounds — said it’s not so much about the past but what lies ahead.
“The energy is the same as the beginning of the season … the playoffs are in front (of us),” she said. “It’s our jobs to play together and have fun.”
Only briefly did the Shock challenge.
Rookie sub Jordan Hooper made a pair of free throws with 2:04 left in the first quarter to give the Tulsa an 18-17 lead, but from that point to halftime the Dream buried the Shock with heavy machinery.
The Dream opened the period on a 14-2 blitz that included six consecutive layups.
McCoughtry (12 points in 15 minutes) played off the bench after missing the past two games with tendinitis in her feet, and rookie sub Shoni Schimmel served admirably with 13 points and nine assists. Cooper said McCoughtry’s minutes will increase as her fitness improves.
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