Atlanta clinches the No. 4 seed as Angel Reese exits after a hit to the face in win over Liberty

NEW YORK -- — Allisha Gray scored 24 points, Naz Hillmon added 16 and Atlanta secured the No. 4 seed in the playoffs with an 83-65 victory over the New York Liberty on Wednesday night to close out the regular season for both teams. Atlanta (31-13) will have to wait until Thursday to see if it will host Indiana or Washington in the first round beginning Sunday. The Dream got a scare right before halftime when star Angel Reese took a hit to the face while drawing an offensive foul from Sabrina Ionescu. She didn't return for the second half. The Liberty (26-18), who were missing star Breanna Stewart with left knee soreness, are the eighth seed and will face Minnesota in the playoffs. The Dream were down one point after the first quarter before going up 41-26 at the half. Reese drew a foul with 5.6 seconds left on Ionescu that was upgraded to a flagrant 1. Reese hit both free throws then went to the locker room for the final few seconds. She stayed in the locker room for the first few minutes of the third quarter before returning to the bench with 6:19 left in the period. She didn't come back into the game and finished with six points and six rebounds. The Dream didn't need her as the Liberty struggled without Stewart. The Liberty were down by 18 in the third quarter and couldn't get closer than seven the rest of the game. Jonquel Jones led New York with 10 points and 14 rebounds, but left the game in the third quarter with a left ankle injury. She missed a 3-pointer and appeared to step on a fan's foot. Marine Fauthoux scored 14 points and Han Xu had 11 for the Liberty. The Liberty unveiled the 2026 Commissioner's Cup banner before the game as well as having a brief retirement ceremony for Rebecca Allen, who will be playing in her final season. This was her third stint with the team. She played for New York from 2015-19, 2021-22 and this season. ------ See AP’s full WNBA coverage here