WNBA fans have waited long enough, but the night has finally arrived; The WNBA Playoffs have begun, and the Atlanta Dream were set against an exciting Washington Mystics team. The Dream trounced their Round 1 opponents 92-77 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, GA. Rhyne Howard led the Dream with 26 points while the Mystics’ Sonia Citron led her side with 25.
The Dream started Jordin Canada, Allisha Gray, Rhyne Howard, Naz Hillmon, and Angel Reese for their 2026 WNBA Playoffs run.
Before jumping too deep into statistics, something must be said about finding an absolute diamond wading in the wind. Signing DeWanna Bonner as a free agent was not only a solid addition to the Dream’s bench, but a trusted asset to be used in the playoffs. The 17-year veteran played almost 22 minutes tonight and scored 13 points. She also shot 100% from the charity stripe. With Bonner leading Madina Okot, Isobel Borlase, and Te-Hina Paopao off the bench, the Dream are proving to be serious contenders for the championship.
PLAYER HIGHLIGHTS
- Rhyne Howard: 26 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 5 steals, 1 block
- Allisha Gray: 22 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block
- Angel Reese: 13 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 1 block
- DeWanna Bonner: 13 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
- Jordin Canada: 10 points, 3 rebounds, 10 assists, 2 steals
- Naz Hillmon: 4 points, 3 rebounds, 3 steals
- Madina Okot: 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block
If every game were played like tonight’s, the Dream would be a shoo-in for the championship. The Dream ended the night with 16 steals (a team high in the postseason), forced 23 turnovers, and shot 96% from the free throw line.
After a tight first half that saw the teams separated by just five points, the difference maker was the third quarter. The Dream scored 29 points to the Mystics’ 12, and after that, the game was pretty much decided.
“Defensively, we realized that they were getting too many easy looks. Offensively, we were fine in the first half, but we didn’t show up with the aggressiveness that we’ve shown in the past couple of weeks,” said Rhyne Howard after the game. “We had to get back to making them work for everything. In the third quarter, we did that.”
The battle to watch the rest of the round is the Angel Reese-Shakira Austin matchup. They went stat-for-stat, rebound-for-rebound in Game 1, and the pair will crank up the intensity with each match. Both players notched double-doubles.
The Dream will soak up the team’s first playoff win in 2026, then travel to Washington, D.C., to face the Mystics on Friday, Oct. 2.
-Jon Jones
Photos: Courtesy of the Dream