{"id":1045,"section":"sports","section_label":"Sports","url":"https://www.brokenews.co/sports/1045","headline":"Angel Reese powers Dream to 2-1 WNBA Finals lead over Golden State","dek":"Atlanta routed the Valkyries 97-71 in Game 3, and Reese says the team is not letting the title slip away.","body":"Angel Reese has turned into Atlanta's emotional engine in her first WNBA season, and now the Dream are two wins from the franchise's first championship. Atlanta beat Golden State 97-71 on Wednesday night to take a 2-1 lead in the WNBA Finals, with Reese fired up throughout the win.\n\n\"I just want to be able to come in every day and just pour into everybody, bring energy, bring the morale because I think it's contagious,\" Reese said after the game. \"I'm hype all the time and bringing confidence into everybody. Like, you're not taking this from us. In my heart, I'm not letting you take this from us, and I think it becomes contagious within the team. They feel that confidence, too.\"\n\nReese said that mindset has carried her through the season. Steals have also been a defining feature of Atlanta's playoff run, with the Dream using their defensive pressure to swing possessions and series in their favor throughout the postseason.\n\nGame 4 is Saturday, with Atlanta looking to move within one win of the title.","published_at":"2026-10-23T22:02:47.435281+00:00","source_count":4,"written_from":[{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Angel Reese fuels Atlanta Dream’s WNBA Finals surge and is now 2 wins from her first title","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/angel-reese-fuels-atlanta-dream-215325204.html"},{"outlet":"CBS Sports","publisher":"CBS Sports","title":"The Dream are undefeated when Angel Reese makes a 3-pointer: Inside how she rebuilt her shot 'from scratch'","url":"https://www.cbssports.com/wnba/news/angel-reese-atlanta-dream-rebuilt-3-point-shot-karl-smesko/"},{"outlet":"Defector","publisher":"Defector","title":"These WNBA Finals Are Made Of Steal","url":"https://defector.com/these-wnba-finals-are-made-of-steal"},{"outlet":"New York Post","publisher":"New York Post","title":"Angel Reese repeatedly taunts Valkyries during historic performance as Dream take WNBA Finals lead","url":"https://nypost.com/2026/10/22/sports/angel-reese-repeatedly-taunts-valkyries-during-historic-performance-as-dream-take-wnba-finals-lead/"}],"more_coverage":[{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"‘Generational Meme Run,’ ‘Better Win or This Will Come Back to Haunt Her’ — Fans React to Angel Reese’s Viral Taunting of Valkyries in WNBA Finals","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/generational-meme-run-better-win-150655626.html"},{"outlet":"CBS Sports","publisher":"CBS Sports","title":"Angel Reese's superpower: Her contagious confidence has the Dream two wins from a WNBA title","url":"https://www.cbssports.com/wnba/news/angel-reeses-superpower-contagious-confidence-dream-wnba-title/"},{"outlet":"New York Post","publisher":"New York Post","title":"This is Angel Reese’s moment","url":"https://nypost.com/2026/10/22/sports/how-angel-reese-took-over-2026-wnba-finals-with-atlanta-dream/"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"‘She needed to get better’: Nick Wright weighs in on Angel Reese","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/she-needed-better-nick-wright-173006789.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Angel Reese was mocked, doubted and hated. Now she’s dominating the Finals","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/angel-reese-mocked-doubted-hated-193110768.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"“Owe Angel Reese an Apology”: Ex-College Player Gets Strong Admission About the Dream Star ‘Off Her Chest’ Before Game 4","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/owe-angel-reese-apology-ex-030839065.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"‘If Caitlin Clark did this’ – WNBA fans condemn Angel Reese gesture after Dream win","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/caitlin-clark-did-wnba-fans-125500174.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"WNBA All-Star tells Stephen A. Smith ‘people might be sleeping on’ key change Angel Reese made mid-season","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/wnba-star-tells-stephen-smith-124000343.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"WNBA media grifters ripped for ignoring Angel Reese’s incredible Finals run","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/wnba-media-grifters-ripped-ignoring-161341899.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"‘I am shocked’: Sophie Cunningham reacts after Angel Reese and Dream’s dominance in WNBA Finals","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/am-shocked-sophie-cunningham-reacts-220528388.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Atlanta's Angel Reese convinced Dream now holds mental edge on Valkyries","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/atlantas-angel-reese-convinced-dream-222255862.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Valkyries’ Gabby Williams shuts down WNBA media troll’s national anthem question","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/valkyries-gabby-williams-shuts-down-223216928.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Brash baller Angel Reese trash-talking her way toward a WNBA championship","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/brash-baller-angel-reese-trash-231338624.html"}],"image":null,"embed":null,"license":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/","attribution":"Analysis data is licensed CC BY 4.0. Credit brokenews and link to the story page you took it from. Source headlines, story titles taken from a source headline, and quoted passages remain the property of their publishers and are quoted for comparison, not licensed onward.","terms":"https://www.brokenews.co/about#reuse"}