Overview
- The Atlanta Dream beat the Golden State Valkyries 80-69 Thursday to force the first Game 7 in WNBA Finals history.
- Angel Reese posted 15 points, 14 rebounds and six assists in Game 6 and finished the series with 78 rebounds, surpassing Sylvia Fowles’ 2017 Finals mark of 75.
- Allisha Gray scored 23 points and Rhyne Howard added 21 as Atlanta built a 46-26 halftime lead that the Valkyries could not overcome.
- The league moved Game 6 to State Farm Arena and pushed the tip to a 12:30 p.m. ET start to avoid an Atlanta Hawks scheduling conflict, a decision critics say prioritized an NBA date over fan access despite the game selling out.
- Game 7 will be played Saturday at Chase Center in primetime, where home teams have won 11 of 13 previous deciding Finals games and where record-high secondary-market get-in prices near $396 underline intense demand and the weight of homecourt advantage.