Angel McCoughtry was in disbelief after Atlanta’s loss to the Mercury on Sunday.
While she iced her feet in the locker room, McCoughtry recounted the 95-87 loss to Phoenix, which left Atlanta with its sixth consecutive loss. The Dream seemingly had the game in their back pocket but turned around and saw the Mercury march away on a 16-4 run to end the game.
“It doesn’t even feel real that we lost right now,” McCoughtry said. “It’s unbelievable. What happened in the end? I don’t even know.”
The loss was much of the same for the Dream as of late. After storming out of nowhere to lead the Eastern Conference, the team has been knocked down a few pegs. The recent losses have the team tied for the longest losing streak in 2016, a far cry from the hot start to the season.
Center Elizabeth Williams saw it as a glimpse of the season, both in good and bad spots. Several times in 2016, the Dream have hung around with opponents only to get hot late and eek out wins. Lately, wins have been within reach only for something to go wrong as the clock draws closer to all zeroes.
“That’s been the story of our basketball games, having these spurts and these moments,” Williams said.
For guard Tiffany Hayes, who scored 26 points against Phoenix, the unfavorable turn of fortune boils down to not following through on some of the basics of basketball.
“We’re just not doing the little things,” Hayes said. “box outs where we think we’ll get the rebound and the other people get it. Not rotating when we need to rotate. Little stuff like that.”
Dream coach Michael Cooper echoed similar thoughts. He said his squad wasn’t delivering on the details that help teams survive in the WNBA such as fighting for rebounds and out-hustling opponents in the critical moments of a game.
It’s shown in the team’s recent games, as Atlanta has lost the last three games by nine points or less. The Dream are hanging around but not finishing when they have the chance.
“We’re still in the playoff hunt,” Michael Cooper said. “We just have to be more detailed in our offense and more disciplined in our defense. We’ll look at tape and make our adjustments.
Although she seemed dazed and confused after another unsatisfying end to a game, McCoughtry sounded confident in the team’s chances going forward.
“We’re going to figure things out,” McCoughtry said. “We’re not losing games because other teams are really beating us. We’re beating ourselves. I think it’s just something that has to turn around for us.”
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