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Liberty-Dream Preview

Sep 6, 2010 - 5:41 PM By NOEY KUPCHAN STATS Writer

New York (22-12) at Atlanta (19-15), 7:30 p.m. EDT

After setting a record with 17 consecutive losses during their inaugural season in 2008, the Atlanta Dream have a chance to reach their first WNBA finals in franchise history with a sweep of the New York Liberty on Tuesday in the East finals.

The Dream, who went 4-30 in their first season, won 81-75 at New York on Sunday and showed no ill effects from its nine-day layoff. Atlanta had not played since Aug. 27 after sweeping the No. 1 seed Washington Mystics in the conference semifinals.

"The Atlanta Dream just refused to lose tonight," coach and general manager Marynell Meadors said after the victory. "(We) played well. We showed a few of the effects of possibly that layoff between games, but I thought we really fought hard."

Angel McCoughtry led the Dream with 21 points and also contributed five rebounds.

"Angel is that type of player," Meadors said of the second-year forward who was rookie of the year last season. "She's been that way her entire career, which is short in the WNBA."

Starting center Sancho Lyttle also played well for the Dream, adding 18 points and grabbing a game-high 13 boards.

"We found ways to be big, and I thought Sancho Lyttle was definitely a huge factor in our success tonight," Meadors said. "We have to look back at the way we built the Atlanta Dream. It's built on speed, quickness, depth and balance."

If the Liberty want to keep their championship dream alive, they will need three-time All Star and 2007 WNBA Finals MVP Cappie Pondexter to lead the way.

Pondexter scored a game-high 24 points on 8-of-20 shooting from the floor in Game 1, but will need to elevate her play if the Liberty want to bring the series back to New York.

"I don't know what our mindset was coming into the game, but I don't think it was aggressive enough," Pondexter said. "Atlanta did a great job of just coming out with energy because sometimes when you have too many days off you come out really flat, but they didn't."

New York was without its leading rebounder Janel McCarville, who has not played since Aug. 29 due to a sprained left ankle. Her status for this game is unknown.

The Liberty have won at Atlanta, winning 90-83 on Aug. 13. Pondexter led the way with 31 points while going a perfect 13 of 13 from the line.

If necessary, the decisive Game 3 will be Thursday at New York.

The winner of this series will face the Seattle Storm in the WNBA Finals, and Game 1 will be at Seattle on Sunday.