Atlanta at Minnesota

It's Game One of the WNBA Championship, and don't underestimate the Atlanta Dream! The odddsmakers sure are. Look at this: the Dream is 9-4 ATS in their last 13 games against a team with a winning record. Atlanta has had excellent balance all season. They ranked No. 4 in the league in rebounds and assists, and No. 6 in points allowed. Atlanta has a ton of big game experience, reaching the Finals for the third time in the past four seasons. This team is hot at the right time, too, as it all clicked with two straight wins over Washington, and a sweep of defending champion Indiana in the postseason. They also come into this game on a torrid 4-0 SU/ATS run. They were a dog in two of the last four games and won both straight-up. Atlanta has a dynamite one-two punch with WNBA scoring leader Angel McCoughtry (21.5 points per game) and Erika de Souza. Going back five weeks, Atlanta has been an underdog four times, and is a perfect 4-0 ATS. The two teams split their regular-season matchups, each defending its home court. The last time these teams met on August 20, Minnesota was favored, but Atlanta won 88-75. During one stretch, Minnesota went almost eight minutes without a field goal against the Atlanta defense, which forced 18 turnovers and allowed 41% shooting. The Minnesota Lynx lost in the WNBA finals last year, and Atlanta is a difficult matchup for them, so grab the big dog in this evenly matched contest. In addition, it will be a slow paced, defensive game, which is often the case in a championship series. Minnesota can play strong defense (No. 3 in points allowed), are on a 5-0 run UNDER the total, and the UNDER is 12-3-2 in the Lynx's last 17 games when playing on three or more days of rest. Take the points and play on the Atlanta Dream, and play this one to finish UNDER the total.