The Valkyries are one win away from their first WNBA Finals appearance.
SAN FRANCISCO: In 2015, when the Golden State Warriors made the playoffs out of nowhere, led by a young star named Stephen Curry, and clinched the #1 seed in the Western Conference, the team launched their playoff motto, “Strength in Numbers.” The saying was seen across the Bay Area. It’s a slogan that perfectly captured the Golden State Warriors dynasty.
Flash forward 11 years, and the Bay Area’s newest team on the block is achieving success in the same manner. With strength in numbers.
The Golden State Valkyries took a commanding 2-0 series lead last night with an 83-81 win over the Las Vegas Aces in Game 2 of the WNBA semifinals.
It was once again Golden State’s depth and bench unit who kept them in this game. In Game 1 it was the surprising hero, Aminata Gueye, and in Game 2 Tiffany Hayes was key. “When you have someone like her, it makes us all want to play as hard as we can,” Veronica Burton said after the game. The Valkyries had a different set of stars step up, as has been a common theme this season. We wouldn’t be us without her.”
In Game 2, Hayes led the team in scoring with an efficient 21 points in 17 minutes off the bench. Gabby Williams was right behind her with 20 points. Kayla Thornton had 16 points.
As with what has been a common theme this season, the Valkyries had a different set of stars step up. In Game 1 it was Kaitlyn Chen and Aminata Gueye; in Game 2 it was Tiffany Stokes, Gabby Williams, and Kayla Thornton.
“It’s so valuable to have so many people who can score on any given night,” Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase said. “The ability for our closing group—it doesn’t matter who scores as long as we’re finding each other and we’re getting quality looks.”
It was a game that came down to the wire. At one point, the Valkyries led by 19 points. The Aces finally took their first lead of the game at 76-74 with 1:34 to play in regulation. But Gabby Williams immediately responded with a jumper of her own, tying the game at 76-76.
The Valkyries, with some aggressive defense, forced a shot clock violation on the ensuing possession. On the next possession, Gabby Williams passed to Veronica Burton for the open three and the lead, knocking down a 28-foot 3-pointer over the outstretched arm of A’ja Wilson.
The Aces didn’t have enough left in the tank, and the teams traded free throws down the stretch, Golden State survived a furious battle for the final rebound after Jackie Young intentionally missed her second free throw with six seconds left to seal the deal and victory for the Valkyries.
The strength in numbers motto the Valkyries have relied on all season now has them one win away from their first-ever WNBA Finals berth.
“At the end of the day, we’ve got to take care of business,” Burton said when asked about the rest of the series. “Every game we approach as a do-or-die situation. That’s the reality of it. We are going to approach the next game as such. … Obviously, their backs are against the wall. They’re the reigning champs. They have experience, so it’s not going to be easy. It’s going to be a battle, and we’re going to approach it as such.”
Game 3 is on Friday night in Las Vegas. Tip-off is at 6:30 PM PST. National coverage is on NBC.
Leave a Reply