The Guru’s WNBA Roundup: Atlanta Rides Finishing Surge to Rally Over Golden State While Phoenix Routs Dallas

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

Two WNBA games were played Monday night, and the results affected the logjam areas of the standings behind, for the moment, runaway leader Minnesota (17-2), which was idle.

Down south Atlanta (12-7) rallied over expansion Golden State (9-9) with a 15-2 fourth quarter run outscoring the Valkyries 26-13 in the period and winning 90-81 before a crowd of 3,265 at the Gateway Center in suburban College Park.

That outcome moved the winning Dream into a fourth-place tie with idle Seattle five games behind the first-place Lynx and a half-game behind idle New York (12-6), which hosts Las Vegas (9-9) at 8 p.m. on Tuesday night on ESPN at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

The Aces (9-9) in one of two games Tuesday meet the WNBA defending champion Liberty being in a three-way tie with Golden State, which fell there off Monday’s loss to Atlanta, and idle Indiana 7.5 games behind first and 2.5 behind Seattle and Atlanta.

That deadlock occupies the last of the eight playoff seed spots a game ahead of idle ninth-place Washington (8-10).

The Mystics can tighten that gap within a half-game by wining Tuesday’s other game hosting 12th-place Chicago (6-12) at 11:30 a.m.

In Monday’s other game, Phoenix (13-6) avenged last Friday’s road loss at Dallas (6-14) by beating the Wings 102-72 at home before a crowd of 11,932 at PHX Arena to take sole possession of second place by a half-game over New York and dropping the visitors to 11th place a half-game behind idle Los Angeles at 11.5 and four behind the three-way tie at sixth.

Ahead of the ESPN broadcast on Tuesday All-Star captains Caitlin Clark of Indiana and Napheesa Collier of Minnesota will pick the other starters from the remaining pool of eight and pool of 12 reserves for the game at Indiana a week from Saturday at 8:30 p.m. on ABC, July 19th.

In the collegiate world the NCAA men’s and women’s tournament committees have begun their summer meetings in Indianapolis and some news may occur whether the two tourneys will expand from 68 to 72 or 76 teams this season pending the state of the current review being conducted by the Executive Committee.

Atlanta Closing Surge Topples Golden State

Allisha Gray scored 24 points for the winning Dream and Naz Hillmon scored 16 fueled by a career-high four makes from deep and the two combined to finish off a 15-2 fourth quarter run to go ahead 87-77 with 4:34 left in regulation.

Gray collected a three-point play and Hillmon made her last two 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions.

Rhyne Howard added 15 points, and Brionna Jones had 14 points, eight boards five assists, while Brittney Griner scored 10 of her 11 points un the first half, the win occurring ahead of a six-game road trip that opens Friday at Indiana.

Golden State’s Monique Billings scored 19 points, Kayla Thornton collected 15, Tiffany Hayes scored 12, while Veronica Burton and Kate Martin each scored 11.

The Valkyries in the first half started hot, shooting 5-7 from deep and 60% overall after the first quarter and later took a 45-43 lead at the break finishing the second quarter on an 8-0 run.

The visitors were still up 68-64 on Billings’ score with 3.2 seconds left in the third quarter.

Atlanta was able to mine 25 points on turnovers by the opposition.

Golden State next visits Indiana at noon Wednesday on NBA TV, no word yet whether Clark will play for the host Fever having missed five games, including the Commissioner’s Cup championship tilt won by Clark’s team at Minnesota. Earlier in the season the All-Star captain and top vote-getter missed five games with a quad injury.

Wednesday’s other games have Seattle at last-place Connecticut (2-16), the Sun on a 10-game losing streak, at 11a.m., Phoenix hosts Minnesota at 3:30 p.m., and Dallas is at Chicago at 8 p.m.

Whitcomb’s 36 Points and Thomas’ 16th Triple Double Leads Phoenix Over Dallas

The Mercury ended a brief two-game losing streak as Sami Whitcomb had a career-best 36 points, 29 of them collected in the first half, the best stretch for all league players this season, while newcomer Alyssa Thomas, whose pro career was all previously played with the Connecticut Sun, had 15 points, 15 assists, and ten boards.

Phoenix has reached triple digits in three of the last five games.

Satou Sabally, whose sister Nara plays with New York, missed her first game due to a right ankle injury.

Dallas, who won over the Mercury last week being the first WNBA team in 25 years to start four rookies, was led by JJ Quinerly with 18 points, while Aziaha James scored 15 and overall No. 1 draft pick Paige Bueckers scored 11.

Wings starters Arike Ogunbowale and DiJonai Carrington were sidelined with left thumb and rib injuries, respectively.

Attending the game was DeWanna Bonner, the six-time All-Star waived recently by Indiana after a short stint signed last winter as a free agent out of the Connecticut Sun.

Reports have her soon to sign with Phoenix.