Dream Wrap Up West Coast Road Trip with Gritty Battle Against Aces

The Atlanta Dream closed out their six-game West Coast swing on Tuesday night, finishing the grueling trip with a strong 4-2 record while covering more than 7,200 miles in just 14 days. Despite a hard-fought effort, the Dream fell just short against the defending champion Las Vegas Aces, moving to 2-2 this season with the starting lineup of Rhyne Howard, Allisha Gray, Maya Caldwell, Naz Hillmon, and Brionna Jones. Atlanta now holds a 6-16 all-time record against Las Vegas, including 3-9 on the road.

Rhyne Howard once again led the way, pacing the Dream with 19 points, six assists, three rebounds, and a steal. Fresh off passing Tiffany Hayes as the franchise’s all-time three-point leader, Howard continued to showcase her all-around game and delivered a clutch triple with 1:37 remaining to tie the contest.

Brittney Griner powered the paint, finishing with 16 points, eight rebounds, two assists, and two blocks. Her eight boards pushed her past Michelle Snow into 17th place on the WNBA’s all-time rebounding list. Gray added her 16th double-digit scoring performance of the season, tallying 16 points, six rebounds, two assists, and two steals in a team-high 37 minutes.

Rookie Te-Hina Paopao provided a key spark off the bench, igniting Atlanta’s first-quarter offense with an early scoring burst. She closed with seven points and five rebounds, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the Dream’s points in the opening frame.

The game itself was a battle of runs. Atlanta edged Las Vegas 19-18 after the first quarter, led by Paopao’s aggressiveness. The second quarter saw Gray and Jones fuel a 14-6 stretch, while Howard capped the half with back-to-back threes to keep the Dream within one at the break, trailing 41-40.

In the third, Howard caught fire again, scoring five straight points and helping Atlanta build a 61-57 advantage heading into the fourth. Paopao connected with Griner early in the final frame before Howard’s steal set up another bucket. The Dream ripped off an 11-0 run spanning the late third into the fourth, but the Aces responded in crunch time to escape with the win.

Howard and Griner combined for over 80 percent of Atlanta’s fourth-quarter offense, and the Dream closed the night shooting an efficient 85.7% from the free-throw line. Still, the late surge from Las Vegas proved too much to overcome.

Atlanta now heads home for a quick turnaround. The Dream will return to Gateway Center Arena tomorrow night, Thursday, August 21, to take on the Minnesota Lynx. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.