Reese shines again as Dream take 2-1 lead
LOS ANGELES — Angel Reese produced another dominant all-round display as the Atlanta Dream routed the Golden State Valkyries, 97-71, to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven WNBA Finals on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila).
Three-time WNBA All-Star and reigning defensive player of the year Reese followed up her 30-point display in Game 2 on Monday to once again lead the Atlanta scoring with 21 points.
The 24-year-old also reigned on the defensive end, finishing with 12 rebounds and three steals to neutralize Golden State’s offense.
Reese was one of five Dream players to finish in double-figures, with Rhyne Howard adding 16 points and Naz Hillmon 15 points.
Gabby Williams led Golden State’s scoring with 15 points.
“We feel good — we’re still pissed that we lost the first game,” Reese said afterwards. “We know how good we are; we know our identity.
“We’re all happy for sure, but it’s going to take more. The job is not finished so we’re going to keep going,” added Reese, who is the only woman in history to record consecutive double-doubles in her first three WNBA Finals games.
“It feels good when you’re in the finals — when you can do it at the highest level, this is what I live for,” Reese said.
Earlier, Reese picked up where she left off in game two, draining a three-pointer to help Atlanta take a 22-12 lead as the first quarter drew to a close.
Golden State narrowed the deficit to six points at half-time and drew level at 48-48 early in the third quarter.
But Atlanta responded with an 8-0 run to pull clear again, and took a stranglehold on the contest after outscoring Golden State 25-17 in the third to lead by 14 points heading into the final period.
Atlanta stretched the lead to 21 points late in the fourth quarter to all but ice the contest and the points kept flowing as the Dream delivered a statement victory.
Game 4 takes place in Atlanta on Saturday.
Both teams are chasing a first WNBA title. The Dream have come up empty in three prior trips to the Finals, most recently in 2013.
The Valkyries, who last year became the first WNBA expansion franchise to reach the playoffs in their inaugural season, are now contending for the title in their second. AFP
WASHINGTON — Two relatively low-spending clubs each seeking a first Major League Baseball crown, the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers, meet in a symbolic showdown when the 122nd World Series begins on Friday (Saturday in Manila).
The best-of-seven championship matchup between frugal teams flies in the face of claims only big-spending teams can win the World Series.
MLB’s collective bargaining agreement with its’ players union expires on Dec. 1 with many expecting a lockout over owners’ desire for a salary cap and the players’ refusal to consider it.
Big spenders like the Los Angeles Dodgers, 2024 and 2025 champions, were seen as overpowering small-market foes with a cap needed to create parity.
However, the Dodgers, with a $338 million payroll, were swept by the Brewers, with a payroll of $143.5 million, in the National League Championship Series.
They play for the crown against a Rays side that spent $98.3 million on salaries and also took down the big-spending New York Yankees on their way to the Fall Classic.
They will have the lowest-ranked payrolls of any World Series since the work stoppage that wiped out the 1994 World Series.
It shows well-run clubs with less money can succeed against richer rivals just as the issue is set to ignite off-season disputes and a possible shutdown.
On the field, baseball fans will be treated to a showdown with two teams seeking a first World Series title. The only other time that has happened in the past century was in 1980 when Philadelphia beat Kansas City.
Tampa Bay, founded in 1998, lost the World Series to Philadelphia in 2008 before being pipped by the Dodgers in 2020.
The Brewers, founded in 1969 as the Seattle Pilots before moving to Milwaukee the following year, reached their only prior World Series in 1982, losing to St. Louis in seven games.
After 44 years, Milwaukee fans are excited to host Friday’s World Series opener.
“The city is ready,” Brewers first baseman Jake Bauers said. “I know the fans are ready and I know we’ll be ready.”
Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy said his players feed off supporters’ passion.
“Those fans, they’re passionate. They wanted this and our players sensed how bad they wanted it,” Murphy said. “That gives them energy and motivation. It makes a difference.”
The Brewers, who led MLB with a club-record 103 wins this season, and Rays, who led the American League with 97 wins, have key players who began their MLB careers on the opposite team.
Tampa Bay’s Freddy Peralta, Most Valuable Player of the American League Championship Series, pitched for Milwaukee for eight years until being traded in January to the New York Mets, who traded him to the Rays in August.
“Milwaukee is the team and the city that gave me the opportunity to make my dreams,” Peralta said. “Milwaukee is going to be always in my heart, but it’s time now to compete.”
Bauers, this year’s NLCS MVP, made his MLB debut in 2018 with the Rays but is in his third season with the Brewers.
Rays star pitcher Drew Rasmussen made his MLB debut with Milwaukee in 2020 before being traded to Tampa Bay in 2021. AFP
