The Atlanta Dream are hoping this is the second consecutive season that their first win comes against the New York Liberty.

That wish may come true with the way the Liberty have played so far.

Atlanta opens its home schedule Friday night when the Liberty try to avoid their first 0-4 start in six years.

After opening with three losses in 2011, the Dream began their run to a second straight WNBA finals appearance with a 79-58 road victory over the Liberty on June 14.

Atlanta, which plays eight of its next 10 at home, will try to get into the win column for the first time in 2012 following Saturday's season-opening 92-84 loss at Indiana. The Dream never led and trailed by 17 in the fourth quarter.

"In the gym. Gotta get better," forward Angel McCoughtry, who had 26 points and seven rebounds, wrote on her official Twitter account Tuesday.

The same is true for the Liberty, who lost 80-62 to defending WNBA champion Minnesota on Tuesday.

New York, which last opened 0-3 in 2009, will try to avoid its first 0-4 start since 2006 when it finished a franchise-worst 11-23.

"We are figuring it all out," said point guard Cappie Pondexter, averaging a team-high 17.3 points with 2.3 assists. "... I think going into Atlanta we have to pound the ball inside. We have a lot of key big players. We need to make an impact inside. That way we can get an open shot and not make it hard for the perimeter."

While Plenette Pierson, Essence Carson, Kara Braxton and Kia Vaughn - combining to average 21.0 rebounds - could give McCoughtry and Sancho Lyttle headaches in the post, Pondexter and the Liberty will be attempting to shoot better.

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Liberty-Dream Preview