Minneapolis, MN
Atlanta Dream survive thriller in Minneapolis, edge Lynx 91-90 to open 2026 WNBA season
The Atlanta Dream trailed by double digits, fought back twice and still needed Angel Reese’s game-saving block in the final seconds to survive.
Atlanta opened the 2026 WNBA season with a 91-90 victory over the Minnesota Lynx on Saturday night, powered by Allisha Gray’s 24 points, Te-Hina Paopao’s pull-up jumper with 12 seconds remaining, and a performance that left little doubt about what this team intends to do this season.
Reese’s block on Emese Hof’s layup attempt in the closing seconds sealed one of the most dramatic opening-night wins before 10,821 fans at Target Center.
When Minnesota pushed its advantage to 13 points in the second quarter and the Dream looked like they were in serious trouble, Allisha Gray took over. The veteran guard finished with a game-high 24 points on 7-of-18 shooting, going a near-perfect 9-of-11 from the free throw line to go along with eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Gray’s ability to get to the line and convert kept Atlanta within striking distance throughout a game that could have spiraled out of control multiple times. She scored 11 points in the third quarter alone as the Dream chipped away at Minnesota’s lead.
Rhyne Howard was equally important on both ends, finishing with 15 points, five assists and three steals. Jordin Canada ran the offense efficiently with 12 points and six assists, and Paopao added six points and four assists in a composed performance off the bench.
With Atlanta trailing 85-87 and the clock winding down, Naz Hillmon stepped back and drained a 22-foot three-pointer with 2:44 left to tie the game and silence the fans in the Target Center. It was the shot of the night, and arguably the play that won Atlanta the game.
Hillmon finished with 15 points on an efficient 6-of-10 from the field, adding seven rebounds in 33 minutes. She was the Dream’s most reliable scorer off the bench and delivered her best basketball when Atlanta needed it most.
Rookie Madina Okot also impressed in her WNBA debut, scoring eight points on 3-of-6 shooting with four rebounds in just 10 minutes, showing the poise and physicality that earned her a roster spot out of training camp.
Angel Reese’s first game in a Dream uniform was complicated. She shot 4-of-11 from the field, committed five turnovers and picked up a first-quarter technical foul that gifted Minnesota a free point. At one point in the first half, she missed three consecutive shots on the same possession.
But Reese also grabbed 14 rebounds, nine on the offensive glass, blocked three shots, came up with two steals, and made the most important play of the game when it mattered most. Her block on Hof’s layup in the final seconds was the kind of athletic, instinctive play that changes games and defines seasons.
That is the player Atlanta acquired this offseason. On opening night, in the most pressure-packed moment of the game, she showed exactly why.
Minnesota had every opportunity to win this game and couldn’t finish it. Olivia Miles finished with 21 points on 6-of-14 shooting and eight assists to go along with eight free throws made. Kayla McBride scored 20 points and hit the go-ahead three-pointer with 1:11 left that looked like it might be the dagger.
Courtney Williams added 14 points and six assists, and the Lynx shot 50 percent from the field, a number that should have been good enough to win.
But 15 turnovers and an inability to execute in the game’s final minute proved too costly. Minnesota had chances to put Atlanta away in the fourth quarter and couldn’t. The Dream made them pay every time.
Atlanta continues its opening road trip Tuesday against the Dallas Wings before returning home for the May 17 opener against the defending champion Las Vegas Aces at State Farm Arena. Minnesota hosts Atlanta again on May 27.
June 1, 2026
A federal judge on Friday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from moving forward with a fund that opponents fear will be used to pay off the president’s political allies.
Judge Leonie Brinkema in the Eastern District of Virginia issued a brief order halting the Department of Justice, the Treasury Department, and other high-ranking administration officials from taking any further action to create the fund or make payments from it.
The order came in a lawsuit filed by a former federal prosecutor and a California professor. The plaintiffs are represented by the legal advocacy groups Democracy Forward and Common Cause. The lawsuit is part of a flurry of legal challenges against the fund.
The Justice Department on May 18 announced a nearly $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” that will make payments to individuals who believe they have been wronged by past administrations. The fund came as part of a settlement agreement in a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump over the leaking of his tax return information by a former IRS contractor.
Trump’s settlement agreement provides for the creation of the fund overseen by a board of five members chosen by acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who previously served as Trump’s personal attorney. Trump can fire the members for any reason.
Brinkema, a President Bill Clinton appointee, took no position on the legality of the fund in her order. She wrote that her order is to ensure no money is “irreversibly disbursed” while the plaintiffs’ motion for a temporary restraining order is pending.
She also set a hearing for June 12 — likely ensuring the fund will remain blocked for at least the next two weeks.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit include Andrew Floyd, a former federal Jan. 6 case prosecutor who was fired by the DOJ in June 2025, and Joseph Caravello, a California university professor who was charged with felony assault on a federal officer after protesting an immigration raid last summer. A jury acquitted Caravello in April.
The nine-count lawsuit alleges in part the fund violates the plaintiffs’ First and Fifth Amendment rights, and violates the authority of Congress.
“Since its inception, this fund has been on a collision course with the United States Constitution,” their complaint says.
Trump has written on social media that the fund will help those “who were so badly abused by an evil, corrupt, and weaponized Biden Administration” receive justice.
The Minnesota Reformer is an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to keeping Minnesotans informed and unearthing stories other outlets can’t or won’t tell..
This week, a global art initiative is coming to the U.S. for the first time, and it will be hosted in Minneapolis. The “Beyond Walls” project started in 2019 at the Eiffel Tower in Paris by an artist known as “Saype.” They are large-scale art operations made in a very special way. He joined FOX 9 News at 5 Sunday about coming to Minneapolis for a week of art.
MINNEAPOLIS (WJON News) — It will be a celebration of everything purple this week in Minneapolis. The city will once again hold a Prince Celebration from Wednesday through Sunday.
Chaka Khan will help kick off the festivities at First Avenue on Wednesday night.
The five-day festival will have a wide array of things to do and see. There is a Prince Sing-Along at the Celebration Block Party on Saturday. Fans can walk the purple way with the second annual Purple Path, which is a city-wide tribute with eight temporary sidewalk clings marking significant sites tied to the artist.
The goal of the sing-along is to have 15,000 people singing arm-in-arm.
Plus, at the Meet Minneapolis Visitor Center, you can check out a replica of the motorcycle used in the 1984 movie “Purple Rain,” a five-foot-tall exact replica of the “cloud shoe” worn by Prince in the music video for “Raspberry Beret,” and paintings by Peyton Scott Russel.
Morris Day, Tevin Campbell, and more will play a concert at The Armory on Friday night.
There will also be walking tours, appearances by Prince’s bands the Revolution and the New Power Generation, and a Prince night at the Twins’ game on Thursday.
Purple Path map, Prince Celebration 2026
Meet Minneapolis, Convention & Visitors Association
Meet Minneapolis, Convention & Visitors Association
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