The Atlanta Dream finished a first-round sweep of the Washington Mystics on Wednesday night, winning Game 2 93-75 at CareFirst Arena to reach the WNBA semifinals for the first time since 2018.
Atlanta had lost in the first round in each of the previous three seasons. Last year’s exit came in three games against the Indiana Fever.
The No. 4 Dream won Game 1 92-77 on Sunday after trailing by 11. The fifth-seeded Mystics were in the playoffs for the first time since 2023. They have not won a postseason game since their 2019 championship run.
ON TO THE NEXT ONE
— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) October 1, 2026
YOUR Atlanta Dream are on their way back to the city with the series dub!
The WNBA Semifinals start THIS SUNDAY at @StateFarmArena
Don’t miss your chance to see the action up close. Tickets are available NOW: https://t.co/2NbzPT715o pic.twitter.com/djI8Y958ud
Jordin Canada Closed Out Game 2
Jordin Canada scored 13 of her 19 points in the fourth quarter of Game 2. She also had 11 assists, seven rebounds, and three steals, and went 4-of-8 from 3-point range.
Washington had cut Atlanta’s lead to 65-62 with a 14-2 run that began in the third quarter. Canada answered with a full-court pass to Angel Reese for a layup. That basket started a 13-0 run that included two baskets from Naz Hillmon, a long 2-pointer from Rhyne Howard, and a Canada 3-pointer from the right elbow for a 78-62 lead. Washington never got within 13 again.
Over the next three possessions, Canada hit back-to-back 3-pointers and a jumper from the free-throw line. Atlanta led 89-70 with 2:58 left.
Howard fouled out with 6:03 remaining. She finished with 15 points.
Dream coach Karl Smesko spoke after Game 2 on Wednesday. He called Canada “fantastic down the stretch.”
Allisha Gray led Atlanta with 22 points and four steals. She also scored 22 in Game 1. Gray said of Canada, “She’s really, really our engine, so we go as she goes.”
WHAT WOULD WE DO WITHOUT OUR GENERAL
— Atlanta Dream (@AtlantaDream) October 1, 2026
Need a bucket? Call JC! Need a dime? JC got you! Need some heart? It’s NOTHING for a giant! With a near triple-double in our series-clinching win, Jordin Canada is YOUR @albertapp Player of the Game! pic.twitter.com/du7T6LYWWS
Turnovers Decided Both Games
The Mystics committed 22 turnovers in Game 1, and Atlanta scored 27 points off them. The Dream finished with 16 steals. That set a franchise playoff record and fell two short of the WNBA playoff mark of 18, set by Indiana in 2009.
Howard had five of those steals to go with 26 points. After Game 1, she said Atlanta needed to play its defense for all 40 minutes because “you want to take their confidence early.”
In Game 2, Washington turned it over 11 times in the first half and 19 times overall. Atlanta scored 23 points off those turnovers.
Atlanta’s Third Quarter in Game 1
Howard opened Game 1 with a 3-pointer 22 seconds in. Washington answered with an 8-0 run that included four points from Kiki Iriafen and a 3-pointer from Georgia Amoore. The Mystics led 26-21 after the first quarter and 41-36 at halftime.
Canada’s layup before the break cut the deficit to five. The Dream opened the third quarter on a 7-0 run, and Gray’s 3-pointer at the end of it gave Atlanta its first lead since the opening minute. Atlanta outscored Washington 29-12 in the quarter.
Reese had 13 points and 12 rebounds in her first career playoff game. DeWanna Bonner scored 13 off the bench.
After Game 1, Bonner told The Associated Press, “I think the second half, Karl [Smesko] settled us down.”
Washington’s Young Core Got Its First Playoff Minutes
Washington entered the postseason as the youngest team in the WNBA. Sonia Citron and Iriafen, both second-year All-Stars, were playing their first playoff games. Mystics coach Sydney Johnson was coaching in the WNBA playoffs for the first time.
Iriafen picked up two fouls in the first quarter of Game 1. After that game, Iriafen said, “I have to be more disciplined and understand the flow of the game.”
Citron said afterward that in the third quarter, “we just let some of our discipline slip.”
Citron and Iriafen sat beside Johnson at the Game 1 postgame press conference, and he noted it was their first playoff game. “There was a lot of good stuff out there,” Johnson said.
Rookie Cassandre Prosper played 21 minutes off the bench in Game 2 after playing one minute in Game 1. The Mystics outrebounded Atlanta 50-31 in Game 1 and 42-27 in Game 2. They also made 24 of 28 free throws in the clincher.
Citron scored 25 points in both games. She had five turnovers in Game 2. Iriafen finished Game 2 with 15 points and 16 rebounds. According to The Associated Press, she became the first player in Mystics history with a first-half double-double in a playoff game.
Atlanta opened Game 2 with a 9-2 lead in the first two and a half minutes. Washington never led.
After Game 2, Johnson said, “I just challenge our players to appreciate that this is going to sting.”
Something magical is brewing in D.C. A new chapter is here and the Washington Mystics’ young quartet has belief building in the city as they star on SLAM 262.
— WSLAM (@wslam) May 13, 2026https://t.co/ViWFtRNfe9 pic.twitter.com/xkFxM5dZPe
Up Next: New York Liberty
Atlanta will face the eighth-seeded New York Liberty in the semifinals. New York swept the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx. According to the AP, that made the Liberty the first No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in the league’s 30-year history.
The Dream have home-court advantage in the best-of-five series. Game 1 is Sunday at State Farm Arena, and Game 2 is Wednesday at State Farm Arena. Game 3 is Friday, Oct. 9, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Tip-off times have not been announced.
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2026 WNBA Playoff Tracker: Scores, Schedule, TimesThe post Dream vs. Mystics Takeaways: Atlanta Sweeps Washington, Reaches First Semifinal Since 2018 appeared first on Ballislife.com.