New York Liberty face the Atlanta Dream in Game 1 of the WNBA semifinals

NEW YORK (AP) — Breanna Stewart and the New York Liberty have been in this spot often in the last few seasons.

New York will be making its third appearance in the semifinals of the WNBA playoffs in the past four years when the Liberty play the Atlanta Dream on Sunday in Game 1 of the best-of-five series.

“Experience in the playoffs definitely matters,” Stewart said Friday before practice. “There’s so many things (during a longer series) that you have to stay focused on the end goal."

That end goal would be reaching the WNBA Finals and trying to win a second title in three seasons.

“With this group, for the majority of us, (we’ve) been in this type of series, where it’s not getting too high or too low is the huge important part,” Stewart said. “And what we did in the first round is great — we’re happy to be here — but that wasn’t a goal for our season to get out of the first round.”

New York was dominant in the first round while sweeping the Minnesota Lynx, becoming the first No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 seed in the league’s 30-year history.

“The approach that we’re having in these playoffs is pretty much where you want to be,” Stewart added. “We’re the ones that are staying poised, staying under control at all times. But we’re gonna be aggressive for the full 40 minutes, and if you want something, you’re gonna have to go through us to get it."

Atlanta is the newcomer to this round, advancing this far for the first time since 2018. Aware of the team's lack of playoff experience other than Jordin Canada, Dream GM Dan Padover went out and got DeWanna Bonner as a free agent in late August. Bonner has played 100 games in the playoffs, the most in league history.

She joined a stacked lineup that includes Rhyne Howard, Allisha Gray and Angel Reese. That group lifted the Dream to their first playoff win since 2016 when they swept the Washington Mystics.

“I think the pace that they were playing with was really good,” Liberty coach Chris DeMarco said. "I think (Bonner) brought a lot of veteran leadership to them, a lot of timely scoring to really settle them into games. I think Howard and Gray are just two really good — or great guards that we have to slow down. When the game gets tough, they kind of put their heads down and kind of take over that scoring.”

The Atlanta Dream had one of the best defenses in the league this year, anchored by the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Angel Reese. Atlanta led the league in steals per game (9.1), which it converted to 18.1 points per game. The Dream raised that in the playoffs, scoring 27 points off miscues in their Game 1 win over Washington and getting 23 more in the clincher.

They are very active getting into passing lanes, which makes scoring in transition difficult.

The two teams met in the final two games of the regular season with the No. 4 seed on the line, and the Dream won both those contests. Stewart sat out the second game to get some rest heading into the playoffs. Neither team puts much stock in the value of those two games, other than they provided fresh film to both sides from late in the season.

The Dream will play the first two games of the semifinals in State Farm Arena, home of the Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta played six regular-season games at the arena, which seats more than 17,000 fans. The Dream's usual home, the Gateway Center Arena, holds about 3,500. Atlanta played Game 1 of its series against the Mystics at State Farm Arena. If the Dream win in the semifinals, it's unclear what they'll do for the Finals since singer Sombr is performing there the night of Game 3 and the Hawks have their home opener the same evening as Game 4.

See AP’s full WNBA coverage here

Atlanta Dream guard Jordin Canada, left, reacts after committing a foul against the Washington Mystics during the second half in Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

Minnesota Lynx guard Olivia Miles fouls New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (30) during the second half of Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)

Atlanta Dream guard Allisha Gray, second from left, is held back by teammates after no foul was called against the Washington Mystics during the second half in Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

New York Liberty players huddle after winning Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Lynx, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Heather Khalifa)

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — The remains of medieval ruler Czar Samuel arrived in Bulgaria on Saturday, after decades of negotiations with neighboring Greece.

Samuel, or Samuil in Bulgarian, was a warrior emperor who battled the Byzantine Empire to expand his kingdom but was ultimately defeated and died shortly afterward in 1014. He is considered a symbol of Bulgaria’s national identity.

The remains, discovered at a Greek border area 60 years ago, were flown to the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, aboard a military aircraft that was escorted by Bulgarian air force fighter jets from the country’s border with Greece.

The coffin with the remains arrived at a central square in Sofia, where it was welcomed by thousands of Bulgarians. In a rare show of unity, politicians from all ends of the fragmented political spectrum also paid tribute to the medieval ruler, listening to the national anthem and a 21-gun salute.

“Today we Europeans are learning to read history with a desire to belong not only to our homeland, but also to the culture that unites us across the entire European continent," Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said at the ceremony.

“That is why Europe must not reopen old wounds but must work for peace as the supreme good,” Radev added, referring to the centuries-long history of rivalry between the two neighboring states.

A procession accompanied the remains of Czar Samuel to the nearby Church of Saint Sophia, a sixth-century basilica that gave its name to the Bulgarian capital. According to church officials, Samuel was baptized in this church.

“More than a millennium after his life and historic feat, Czar Samuel returns to his people to remain forever in Bulgaria,” said Patriarch Daniil, the head of Bulgaria's Orthodox Church, in a prayer at the white marble sarcophagus where the remains were laid to rest.

Saturday’s handover in Thessaloniki follows an agreement earlier this week between the two countries’ culture ministers, under which Bulgaria will return religious relics taken from Greek monasteries during World War I.

Several prominent Greek academics and religious leaders have criticized the arrangement as inadequate on the Bulgarian side.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev attended a ceremony at Thessaloniki’s Museum of Byzantine Civilization, where the remains were kept, before the handover.

“These are items that belong to both our peoples; they constitute our memory and our bond, and our compatriots and future generations deserve and must have the opportunity to pay tribute to their ancestors,” Radev said.

“If in the past Czar Samuel divided us, I can say that today he unites us. He strengthens our strategic cooperation and makes the historical relations between our states and peoples even stronger,” he said.

Mitsotakis said he hoped Saturday’s ceremony would bolster Greece’s international campaign to return the Parthenon Marbles, a collection of 2,500-year-old marble sculptures taken from the Acropolis in Athens and later displayed in the British Museum.

“The global community is essentially re-evaluating its long-standing stance on protecting cultural heritage,” Mitsotakis said.

“This shift is embodied by today’s initiative, which rests on the obvious principle that monuments and historical heirlooms cannot be treated as spoils of war, nor as the result of circumstances subsequent to their creation," he added.

—————

Kantouris reported from Thessaloniki, Greece.

Associated Press writer Derek Gatopoulos in Athens contributed to this report.

Some of the returned Greek religious artefacts are seen during a handover ceremony between Greece and Bulgaria, in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos)

Some of the returned Greek religious artefacts are seen during a handover ceremony between Greece and Bulgaria, in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos)

Bulgaria's military personnel carry a coffin with the remains of medieval ruler Czar Samuel during a handover ceremony, in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos)

Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, right, and Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev, attend a handover ceremony of the remains of medieval ruler Czar Samuel, in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos)

The remains of medieval ruler Czar Samuel are seen inside a coffin during a handover ceremony, in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos)