Dream Dominate Final Period To Beat Lynx 88-75
ATLANTA (AP) — Tiffany Hayes scored 23 points and the Atlanta Dream recovered after blowing a 17-point lead in the first half and rallied to beat the Minnesota Lynx 88-75 on Tuesday night.
WNBA scoring leader Angel McCoughtry had 19 points and Erika De Souza added 16 points and 16 rebounds as Atlanta (14-9) scored the first 10 points of the fourth quarter and went on to its third straight win — all at home.
Maya Moore shot 4 for 5 on 3-pointers and led Minnesota with 23 points. Rebekkah Brunson had 16 points and 14 rebounds and Seimone Augustus added 14 points for the Lynx (18-7), who began the night one-half game ahead of Los Angeles for the Western Conference lead.
Minnesota outscored Atlanta 29-14 in the third quarter to take a 70-66 lead.
The Dream opened the fourth with five straight baskets to reclaim the advantage.
Minnesota was scoreless in the final period until Janel McCarville made 1 of 2 free throws with 5:30 remaining. The Lynx missed their first 11 shots from the field in the period and trailed 86-71 before Devereaux Peters ended the drought with 2:22 remaining.
Atlanta led 24-20 early in the second qurter before pulling away with the 13-0 run. An offensive rebound and basket by de Souza, followed by a steal and two free throws by McCoughtry, started the run. Hayes scored at the end of the run to give Atlanta a 37-20 lead.
Moore's third 3-pointer, from at least 25 feet, came with only 3.8 seconds remaining in the first half. The Dream had a quick answer when Hayes launched an even longer 3 to beat the buzzer. Officials reviewed video to confirm there was time remaining on the clock when Hayes, only a few feet inside the midcourt line, took the shot to give Atlanta a 52-41 halftime lead.
NOTES: Grammy-winning R&B singer Usher had a front-row seat. ... Atlanta Hawks teammates Lou Williams and Jeff Teague also had courtside seats. ... Former Hawks forward Josh Smith, now with the Pistons, heard a few boos when he was shown on the video board. ... De Souza posted her 11th double-double.
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