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Sports

Dream Beat Valkyries 80-69 in Game 6 to Force First Game 7 in WNBA Finals History

Atlanta built a 17-point first-quarter lead and held off a late Golden State rally at State Farm Arena on Thursday, setting up a winner-take-all Game 7 in San Francisco on Saturday.

By admin Oct. 29, 2026 · 3:58 PM ET 2 min read

A large indoor basketball arena with a polished wooden court and crowded stands under bright lights
A large indoor basketball arena with a polished wooden court and crowded stands under bright lights

ATLANTA – The Atlanta Dream beat the Golden State Valkyries 80-69 on Thursday at State Farm Arena, tying the WNBA Finals at three games each and forcing the first Game 7 in WNBA Finals history.

A basketball resting on a polished wooden court near the center circle with empty arena seats behind it

Golden State had taken a 3-2 series lead in Game 5, but Atlanta answered with a fast start on Thursday and held the lead from the opening minutes onward. The series will be decided Saturday at 8 p.m. ET at Chase Center in San Francisco. Either team would win its first WNBA championship: Golden State is in only its second season, and Atlanta reached the Finals in 2010, 2011 and 2013 without winning a title.

A fast start Atlanta never gave back

Atlanta opened with a 13-0 run in the first quarter, with Allisha Gray scoring eight points in the first seven minutes, according to CNN. The Dream led 32-15 after one quarter, a 17-point margin that CNN reported as the largest first-quarter lead in Finals history. Atlanta shot 11 of 15 from the field in the quarter, including six three-point shots.

Three basketball players in plain uniforms without logos contesting a shot near the hoop in front of a crowd

The lead reached 25 points in the second quarter before Golden State closed the half on a run that cut the margin to 46-26 at halftime. Atlanta still led by 16 points with 10 minutes left. Golden State got within 13 points in the fourth quarter and within eight after a Gabby Williams layup and free throw, but Gray answered with a corner three-pointer with about a minute left to rebuild the lead to 11, and Atlanta closed out the win from there.

Gray led Atlanta with 23 points, six rebounds, three assists, two steals and three blocked shots. Rhyne Howard added 21 points, and Angel Reese finished with 15 points, 14 rebounds and six assists, according to ClutchPoints. The game tipped off at 12:30 p.m. ET, a midday slot chosen so Atlanta could play at State Farm Arena rather than its usual home arena, which seats around 3,500 people. CNN reported that the arena was sold out despite the early start.

Spectators in arena stands with their hands raised, faces indistinct

What Game 7 decides

Last season was the first in which the WNBA switched its Finals format to a best-of-seven series, so no Finals had reached a seventh game before Thursday. Saturday’s game is winner-take-all: the team that wins takes the championship, and the team that loses goes home without a title after six games.

Atlanta’s win also answered the Game 5 loss at home in the series, when Golden State moved one win from the title. On Thursday, Atlanta’s early shooting gave it room to absorb Golden State’s fourth-quarter push, and its late three-point shots stopped the rally each time the margin shrank. The full series now comes down to one game in San Francisco.

Reporting based on coverage by CNN and ClutchPoints.

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