Lindsey Harding's pull up jump shot with 37 seconds remaining gave the Atlanta Dream the lead for good as they went on to defeat the Indiana Fever by a score of 86-80. Harding played all 40 minutes in the game scoring 17 points and grabbing seven rebounds as the Dream captured their second win of the season against the Eastern Conference leading Fever.
Atlanta controlled the first half of the game taking a 42-32 lead into the half thanks to a stingy defense and some cold shooting by Indiana. The Fever answered in the third quarter outscoring the Dream 29-17 to take a 61-59 lead into the fourth. Atlanta lost Angel McCoughtry for a portion of the third quarter after she was inadvertently poked in the eye on a play. Her absence opened the door for Iziane Castro Marques to make an impact and earn some late playing time from coach Marynell Meadors while McCoughtry sat in the fourth due to foul trouble.
Castro Marques came off the bench to score eleven points including a huge three pointer with just over two minutes remaining that put Atlanta ahead by two. Angel McCoughtry once again led Atlanta in scoring with 20 points but this victory was a team effort as five different Dream players scored in double figures. Erika de Souza pitched in 14 points and six rebounds while Sancho Lyttle finished with 10.
Tamika Catchings scored a game high 22 points for Indiana while Tangela Smith added 15. Katie Douglas finished with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists. Atlanta was able to overcome 18 turnovers in the game thanks to hitting 55 percent of their shots. The Dream's defense limited Indiana to just 39 percent shooting in the game.
The victory tightens up the Eastern Conference standings considerably with Atlanta moving to 15-13 and just four games behind the Fever for first place in the conference whom they play two more times this season. Atlanta is now just one back of New York for third place. Since starting the season 3-9, the Dream has won 12 of 16 and is slowly beginning to resemble the team that many thought would be a favorite to return to the WNBA Finals.
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