Record Night | Dream take down Sun | 103-59

There are nights when you watch a team and you see everything they are capable of the offense, the defense, the depth, the star power, the role players all of it firing at the same time in the same direction.

Thursday night at Gateway Center Arena was that night for the Atlanta Dream.

The Dream held the Connecticut Sun to 59 points the fewest they have allowed all season. They got 39 points from their bench. They had five players finish in double figures. Rhyne Howard set a WNBA record. Allisha Gray broke her own franchise record. Angel Reese got her 30th double-double of the season. Naz Hillmon hit her 100th career three-pointer. And the starting five that has been one of the most dominant groups in the league all year moved to 26-8 together.

This was a complete performance. And it came at exactly the right moment in the season.

Angel Reese had a night that belongs in the history books

30 points. 10 rebounds. 3 assists. 2 blocks. Her 30th double-double of the season.

Let me put that number in perspective for you. Alyssa Thomas set the WNBA single-season double-double record in 2023 with 28. Angel Reese has 30. She didn't just break the record she shattered it with games still remaining. She also recorded her 12th game this season with 20 or more points, showing she is not just a rebounder anymore. She is a complete, dominant offensive player who is also the most feared rebounder in this league.

Reese has become something special in Atlanta. The trade that brought her here from Chicago was already looking like one of the best moves of the offseason by April. Right now in September it looks like one of the best trades this franchise has ever made. Period.

Rhyne Howard made WNBA history

With her 129th three-pointer of the season in just 40 games Howard set a new WNBA record for made threes in a single season. One hundred and twenty-nine. In forty games. That is not just historically great three-point shooting. That is redefining what is possible at this position in this league.

And the three-point record wasn't even the only milestone Howard hit tonight. With her fourth steal of the game she moved into third all-time in steals in Atlanta Dream franchise history with 306 trailing only Angel McCoughtry and Sancho Lyttle. Howard is also currently leading the entire league in steals per game this season.

10 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals, and a block. That is an all-world performance from the franchise cornerstone on a night when she set a league record. And she made it look effortless.

Allisha Gray broke her own franchise record again

With 774 points and counting, Gray set a new Atlanta Dream single-season scoring record surpassing the mark she established just one year ago. Gray now owns the two highest-scoring seasons in franchise history. Both of them belong to her. She dropped 10 points and 5 assists tonight in one of those quietly dominant performances that you only notice if you're watching closely and if you've been watching this season, you know that Gray's consistency has been the backbone of everything this team has done.

The bench was outstanding

39 bench points. On a night when the Dream were holding Connecticut to 59 points and managing the game from the jump, the second unit came in and gave the starters the kind of rest that matters during a long stretch run.

Madina Okot came off the bench for 10 points, 3 rebounds, and a steal — her development all season has been one of the most exciting storylines on this roster. The rookie center from Kenya who didn't pick up a basketball until she was 16 is now a legitimate contributor on a team with championship aspirations.

Te-Hina Paopao matched Okot with 10 points and was sharp from the perimeter exactly the kind of bench shooting that makes this team almost impossible to guard across 40 minutes.

Naz Hillmon hit her 100th career three-pointer

The 2025 Sixth Player of the Year reached a personal milestone tonight — her 100th career three-pointer. A player who entered last season with exactly one made three in her career. Under Karl Smesko's system she has been completely transformed offensively and tonight's milestone is the punctuation mark on one of the great individual development stories in the league over the last two years.

The defense was the real statement

59 points allowed. Season low. Against a Connecticut Sun team that is competing for playoff positioning with everything they have.

This Dream team has been one of the most explosive offensive groups in the league all season 113 points against Indiana, 107 against Toronto, 109 given up to Las Vegas in the biggest offensive explosion they've faced. But Saturday night they reminded you that when they decide to take the game away from you defensively — the way they did against Seattle earlier this season with 14 steals and 23 forced turnovers they are equally capable on that end.

Howard leading the league in steals. Reese dominating the glass. Gray picking off passes. Hillmon bringing physicality in the paint. This defense, when it's locked in, is elite.

My take

26-8 with this starting five. The fewest points allowed all season. A WNBA record from Rhyne Howard. Angel Reese's 30th double-double. Allisha Gray's name at the top of the franchise scoring records twice. Naz Hillmon's 100th three. Thirty-nine bench points.

This Atlanta Dream team is building toward something. Every game adds another layer to what could be a remarkable playoff run. And Saturday night was the most complete performance they've put together in a long time offense, defense, starters, bench, stars, role players. All of it. At the same time.