Angel Reese Powers Atlanta Dream Into Playoffs With Career-High Night

Her surge in scoring, rebounding and defense has shifted award talk and raised genuine championship expectations for the team.

Overview

Reese scored a career-high 31 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in a 99-89 win over the Phoenix Mercury that clinched Atlanta a playoff berth.
The victory secures Reese’s first career postseason appearance and extended the Dream’s run of playoff qualifications to four straight seasons.
Reese’s game completed a stretch of consecutive 20/10/3-type stat lines that placed her alongside A’ja Wilson and Nneka Ogwumike and pushed her to 26 double-doubles for the season.
She and teammates Rhyne Howard and Jordin Canada have anchored one of the WNBA’s top defenses, prompting Reese to predict the Defensive Player of the Year race will include multiple Atlanta players.
Longtime critics have publicly revised earlier takes after Reese’s recent performances, a shift that could change how opponents scout her and how the Dream are perceived entering the late-September playoffs.