SAN FRANCISCO — A chilly taking pictures evening didn’t cease the Golden State Valkyries from making historical past on Wednesday evening.
In entrance of one other sellout crowd of 18,064 at Chase Heart, the Valkyries defeated the Washington Mystics 76-74, marking their first win in franchise historical past.
Golden State (1-1) shot simply 31.9% from the sphere and solely 18.9% from behind the three-point line, however stored the high-scoring Mystics in test.
Veronica Burton did the whole lot on the ground for Golden State, scoring 22 factors, snatching 9 rebounds and shelling out 5 assists. Kayla Thornton added 18 factors.
“It’s more a credit to the players than myself,” Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase mentioned. “Credit goes to our whole staff and credit to our players for stepping up.”
In her season debut, French ahead Janelle Salaün scored 10 factors and grabbed 4 rebounds.
Washington guard Brittney Sykes led all scorers with 30 factors. Mystics rookie Kiki Iriafen, the previous Stanford star, had her second consecutive double-double with 10 factors and 12 rebounds.
In a back-and-forth ultimate quarter, the Valkyries have been those who hit all the massive photographs.
A 3 from Burton with below two minutes left gave Golden State a one-point benefit. On the following possession, Thornton hit an and-one 3-pointer from the left nook to push the result in 5.
Burton formally closed the door on the Mystics (2-1) on a reload 3 from the left wing that made the rating 73-66.
Regardless of making simply two of its 20 3-point makes an attempt within the first half, Golden State held on to a 31-30 lead on the break after Burton hit a fading buzzer-beating 3.
Golden State made 11 of 14 photographs on the free throw line and compelled 10 turnovers. Salaün and Thornton every had seven factors to guide Golden State at halftime.
Within the second quarter, Golden State’s beginning taking pictures guard Tiffany Hayes went again to the locker room after a collision with Washington ahead Shakira Austin prompted a bloody nostril. She didn’t return.
Regardless of lacking 11 3s within the first quarter, the Valkyries solely fell behind three factors after the primary 10 minutes. Golden State began off in a matchup 2-3 zone that pressured 4 first-quarter turnovers and held the Mystics to 37.5 % taking pictures from the sphere.
The Valkyries will hit the highway for the following three video games, beginning with an away recreation in opposition to the Los Angeles Sparks on Friday.
“Games on the road are difficult, but I think it’s just about building off our momentum,” Burton mentioned. “We had a variety of good issues, however we additionally had so much to study from, and so we simply take it one recreation at a time.
Initially Printed: Might 21, 2025 at 9:24 PM PDT
