New York Liberty vs. Atlanta Dream Preview, Prediction and Odds - 6/29/21
A pair of struggling Eastern Conference teams are on the hardwood in a WNBA clash down in Hotlanta. The New York Liberty are on the road as they travel to face the Atlanta Dream Tuesday night to close out a two-game series. In the first matchup between the teams on Saturday night, it was the Liberty cruising to an easy 101-78 victory to get back in the win column. That evened the season series at one victory apiece coming into this contest. It marked just the third win for New York in the last nine meetings with Atlanta. Can the Liberty sweep a two-game set and leave town with some positive momentum?
New York Liberty Seeking Two-Game Sweep
New York had dropped two straight and four of five before earning the road win over Atlanta in the first game of this two-game series. The Liberty enter this game 8-8 and held the fifth seed in the WNBA playoff picture though they were only half a game ahead of ninth-place Washington to remain in the playoff picture. New York broke a 14-14 tie as they closed the first quarter on a 6-0 run as part of a 14-3 surge spanning the first and second quarters to take a 28-17 lead with 7:04 to play in the first half. The Liberty didn’t let the Dream closer than three the rest of the way before pulling away in the second half for the win. New York shot a hot 54.2% from the field, including 13 of 32 from three-point range, and controlled the boards by a 36-25 margin. Sami Whitcomb poured in a career-high 30 points to go with six rebounds, five assists and three steals to lead the Liberty in the win.
The Liberty comes into this contest 8th in the league in scoring offense with an average of 80.7 points per game. New York is 10th in rebounding (33.9 boards a night) and fifth with 19.9 assists per contest. The Liberty ranks 10th in the league in scoring defense by allowing 86.5 points per game. Betnijah Laney leads the Liberty with 19.9 points plus 5.2 assists a night this season. Sabrina Ionescu (10.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, 6.4 assists) and Michaela Onyenwere (10.1 points) are also capable scoring options. Sami Whitcomb (12.3 points, 5.4 boards), Natasha Howard (14.5 points), Kylee Shook, Rebecca Allen, Jazmine Jones, Reshanda Gray and DiDi Richards are key contributors for coach Walt Hopkins. New York is 6th in the league in field goal percentage as they shoot 42.9% from the floor as a team. The Liberty is first in the league in made threes per game (10.3) while ranking fifth in three-point shooting at 35.6%. New York is 7th in free throw percentage as they cash in 80.5% of their chances at the stripe. Howard is expected to miss four to six weeks with a sprained MCL sustained May 24 against Dallas. Allen missed Saturday’s game with plantar fasciitis and is questionable here.
Atlanta Dream Hoping to Bounce Back at Home
Atlanta lost their third straight and seventh in the last eight games after a four-game win streak as they were drubbed by New York Saturday night. The Dream fell to 5-9 on the season and enter this game 11th in the WNBA standings, two games behind the Lynx for the final playoff spot. Atlanta trailed by six after the opening quarter, by 11 in the second quarter and cut the deficit to three at the half. It was still a three-point game in the third quarter before the Dream gave up an 11-2 run to trail by 12 with 4:03 to play in the third quarter. Atlanta couldn’t get closer than four after that as they took the loss. The Dream shot 40.8% from the field, including four of 17 from three-point range, and allowed New York to shoot 54.2% from the floor in the contest. Chennedy Carter led Atlanta with 24 points in the loss.
The Dream is 4th in the league in scoring offense coming into this contest as they average 83.9 points a game this season. Atlanta is 11th in the league in rebounding (33.9 boards a night) and stands 8th in assists with an average of 17.8 per game. The Dream are 12th in the league in scoring defense as they allow an average of 88.3 points a contest this season. Tiffany Hayes is one of three players for the Dream scoring in double figures as she puts up 17.6 points a night. Chennedy Carter contributes 16.8 points plus 3.4 assists per contest. Odyssey Sims, Crystal Bradford, Tianna Hawkins, Elizabeth Williams, Monique Billings, Courtney Williams (17.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists), Aari McDonald, Cheyenne Parker and Shekinna Strickland are other key rotation pieces for coach Nicki Collen. The Dream are 7th in field goal percentage as they shoot 42.6% from the floor as a team. Atlanta stands seventh in threes per game (seven) and 8th in three-point percentage as they hit 33.6% of their long-range attempts. The Dream is 11th in the league in free throw percentage as they shoot 74.2% from the stripe as a team this year. Hayes is out four to six weeks with a Grade 2 tear in her MCL that she sustained on June 17 against Washington.
Pick: New York Liberty
Atlanta is in a death spiral right now with seven losses in their last eight games coming into this contest as they were drubbed by New York. Losing Hayes has been a blow for the Dream as it took the team’s leading scorer out of the mix for the time being. It also makes things difficult for a team that has defensive deficiencies as the Dream is last in scoring defense, last in field goal percentage defense (46.9%) and 10th in three-point field goal percentage defense (39.6%) this season. That plays into the Liberty’s strengths of perimeter shooting and, as we saw on Saturday, when New York is on, they’re dangerous. Give New York the edge on the road.
Total: Over
Two of the three worst scoring defenses in the league are on the floor in this one, which has led to some hefty point totals in the two meetings this season. The teams combined for 177 points in the first meeting this season last month in the Big Apple before following that up with 179 points in Saturday’s game. New York has seen the over hit in 10 of their 16 contests this season. Meanwhile, the Dream have had the over hit in nine of their 14 contests on the year. With the way we’ve seen both teams fire offensively this season and struggled on the defensive end of the floor, this one is going to be filled with offensive fireworks. Seeing how the over has hit in both meetings this season, you have to think that this one will go over the mark as well.
