After opening the season 12-4 and looking every bit like a championship contender, Atlanta has suddenly hit a wall. On July 4, they suffered their fifth straight loss with an 88-83 defeat to the Valkyries, and what’s surprising is that three of those five losses have now come at the hands of Golden State. But according to Angel Reese, the problem isn’t that they’re facing a stronger team; after all, ESPN gave the Dream a 68.8% chance to win their latest matchup. It’s just that they are not able to translate what they’re working on in practice into games.

“No excuse, absolutely no excuse. We just have to be better,” the Double-Double Barbie said, per Wilton C. Jackson II. “If it’s shooting 100 free throws after practice, 50 free throws after practice, that’s what it is. But we haven’t shot great, not just from the free throw line, but our field goals too.”

“So we just have to get back to the drawing board and figure out what works because we know how good we are when we are to make those easy free throws, when we’re able to make our easy shots. But we’re going to continue to put our head down to work.”

In this game, the Dream actually did several things well. They outrebounded the Valkyries 37-30, grabbing 12 offensive boards, and clutched the game in the third quarter, outscoring Indiana 28-15 to take a 10-point lead. Angel Reese recorded another double-double by finishing with 17 points and 13 rebounds, while Allisha Gray led the team with 22 points and Rhyne Howard added 19.

But execution once again proved to be their undoing, especially at the charity line in the last ten minutes.

Atlanta was given 33 chances at the free-throw line but ended up missing 10 of them. Despite getting more free throws, they managed a 70% free-throw percentage compared to the Valkyries’ 76% (13-17). The Dream also shot just 39.5% from the field and 31% from beyond the arc, which allowed Golden State to claw its way back before closing the game on a decisive 14-6 run.

This loss will definitely sting for Dream fans because Atlanta played the kind of basketball that has helped them secure 12 wins this season. But Head coach Karl Smesko doesn’t believe their problems require a major overhaul.

“I don’t think it’s anything drastic,” Smesko said during the post-game conference. “It’s just a play here, a play there, a call here, a call there… We’re playing really hard. Unfortunately, we’re not shooting very well, and I think that’s taken its toll a little bit.”

Despite the five-game skid, neither Angel Reese nor the Dream coach appears ready to panic. Atlanta has five games remaining before the All-Star break, so they still have a chance to reset before the season’s midway point.