WNBA Finals Game 4: Atlanta Dream Look to Go Up 3-1 as Valkyries Fight to Stay Alive

The Atlanta Dream host the Golden State Valkyries in Game 4 of the WNBA Finals on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET, with Atlanta holding a 2-1 series lead and looking to push Golden State to the brink. A Dream win would put them one game away from the first championship in franchise history. "You want to finish the job," Dream coach Karl Smesko said. "These are two great teams going at it, competing at a high level, and only one of us gets to be champions."

For Golden State, the game amounts to a must-win. No team in WNBA history has ever come back from trailing by multiple games in the Finals, and in the NBA only the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers have recovered from a 3-1 Finals deficit. A Valkyries victory would tie the series and send it back to San Francisco, where Golden State could seek to reclaim home-court advantage.

Offense has been the Valkyries' biggest problem. They have averaged just 68 points per game in the Finals and have failed to shoot 35% from the field in any contest. Turnovers have made matters worse — Golden State coughed the ball up 19 times in Game 2 and 17 times in Game 3, with Atlanta scoring 24 and 22 points off those miscues respectively. Rhyne Howard became the first player in league history to record five steals in consecutive Finals games.

Angel Reese has driven Atlanta's attack, averaging 21.7 points on 56.4% shooting, 13.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.0 blocks per game in the series. Atlanta has also scored progressively more in each game — 64, 79 and 97 — a deeply troubling trend for a Valkyries side desperately seeking answers.