The Dream blew what looked like an insurmountable lead on Friday, but Angel McCoughtry was there to clean up the mess.
McCoughtry recorded the sixth triple-double in WNBA history in Atlanta’s 95-90 overtime victory over the Wings. She finished the game with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists and helped the Dream recover after they watched an 18-point lead disappear in the second half.
“It helps to have a superstar, and Angel McCoughtry is nothing less than that,” Dream coach Michael Cooper said. “We’ve been trying to get her to play with her teammates. She sees if you pass it to them, they’ll make it better for you.”
Atlanta (10-9) outlasted Dallas (9-11) in overtime due in large part to McCoughtry, who had five points in the five extra minutes. Her free throw after a technical foul with 2:06 to go gave Atlanta an advantage it did not relinquish.
The game nearly ended in a regulation loss for the Dream, but guard Layshia Clarendon came through in a do-or-die situation. Clarendon was fouled with three seconds left in the fourth quarter and the Dream down two points. With a miss dooming the Dream’s chances, Clarendon came through on both shots.
“I was trying to think positive and tell myself I’ve been there before,” Clarendon said. “It’s one of those all-time basketball moments. I just wanted to knock them down because we wanted to go to overtime because we earned it.”
Had the first half been the story for the whole game, overtime wouldn’t have been necessary.
Atlanta steamrolled Dallas 52-39 in the first half thanks in large part to Tiffany Hayes, who scored 21 of her 27 points in the first two quarters. Hayes was electric in the first half, hitting her first 10 shots in the game.
“I just go with the flow,” Hayes said.
The team’s third quarter was disastrous, as Dallas outscored Atlanta 20-10 and won the rebounding battle mightily. All of a sudden, what seemed like an assured win was now in question.
The good news for Atlanta was McCoughtry had the last laugh.
“The game should have been finished, but hey, fans want to see a game like this,” McCoughtry said. “We knew once we tied the game back up at the end, overtime was ours.”
