Angel Reese posts 30 and 16 as Atlanta Dream beat Golden State Valkyries 79-65

Atlanta Dream beat the Golden State Valkyries 79-65 in San Francisco in the WNBA Finals on 20 October 2026 to level the series at 1-1, with Angel Reese scoring 30 points and grabbing 16 rebounds.

The game came in Atlanta's first appearance in the WNBA Finals since 2013 while Golden State were making their Finals debut after playing their first season in 2025. The Dream had lost the opening match of the series 68-64 on Saturday and entered the contest aiming to avoid falling into a 2-0 deficit. Atlanta had previously recorded zero wins and 10 defeats in Finals series, having been swept 3-0 in 2010, 2011 and 2013.

Reese finished with 30 points and 16 rebounds and becomes only the third player to reach 30 points and 15 rebounds in a Finals series, following Jonquel Jones in 2019 and Breanna Stewart in 2020. The 24-year-old is in her first season with the Dream after being traded from the Chicago Sky and is the youngest player to reach that landmark in a WNBA post-season match.

Atlanta led 39-37 at half-time and seized control during a 13-minute spell spanning the third and fourth quarters, outscoring the Valkyries 30-8 in that period. Reese contributed nine of her points in that stretch as the Dream pulled away to secure the 79-65 victory.

“She just came out on a mission tonight,” said defensive guard Allisha Gray of her team-mate.

Reese, the league's defensive player of the year, addressed her response to Saturday's loss: "I let my team down last game, not really contributing as much as I could in the second half," said Reese. "I just wanted to make sure I came out tonight and left my mark. And I think I did that. "I was hungry, I think we let one slip away [on Saturday]. You can't do that. We felt disappointed, we felt embarrassed. "I walked off the court not feeling like myself, and I wanted to make sure that, this game, I did everything I could do to walk off the court and feel like who I am."

After two matches in California, the best-of-seven series now switches to Atlanta, where games three and four will be played on Thursday, 22 October and Saturday, 24 October.