I said the Valkyries would come out swinging on Saturday, and they did. Golden State beat the Atlanta Dream 67-62 in Game 4 at a sold-out State Farm Arena to tie the WNBA Finals at 2-2. Four days after losing by 26 in the same building, the second-year Valkyries answered with exactly the kind of game they have won all season: ugly, physical and decided on defense. The series is now a best-of-three, and Golden State has home court for two of those games.
A Fast Start for Golden State
The Valkyries set the tone early. They won the first quarter 16-11 and the second quarter 26-15 to take a 42-26 lead into the locker room. Atlanta had no rhythm on offense, and Golden State kept getting into the paint.
Then came the third quarter, which has belonged to the Dream all series. Atlanta won it again, 19-12, and cut into the lead, but it could not get over the hump. The fourth quarter was a slugfest, and Golden State held on. Atlanta won the fourth quarter 17-13, but the Dream never got all the way back.
Angel Reese Was Held in Check
The biggest story of this game was what Golden State did to Angel Reese. After a double-double in each of the first three games, Reese finished with 8 points on 2-of-12 shooting, nine rebounds and six turnovers. She never found the rhythm she had in Atlanta’s two wins. A lot of that had to do with Kiah Stokes, who finished with 16 rebounds, eight of them on the offensive glass, plus three blocks.
Rhyne Howard led the Dream with 19 points and eight rebounds, and Jordin Canada and Isobel Borlase each added 10 points. But Atlanta shot 33 percent from the field and 4-of-23 from three. You are not going to win many Finals games doing that.
Turnovers Flipped
In my preview, I said turnovers were the story of this series, and they were again. This time, it was Atlanta giving the ball away. The Dream turned it over 18 times, and Golden State turned those into 16 points. The Valkyries committed just 9. Golden State has now won both games in this series where it took care of the ball.
Gabby Williams led Golden State with 17 points. It was not always pretty, but she was aggressive from the start, and that is what the Valkyries needed from their best scorer. Tiffany Hayes added 13, and Veronica Burton and Cecilia Zandalasini chipped in 13 and 10.
My Pick
I picked Dream 81, Valkyries 75 in my Game 4 preview, and I was wrong on the winner this time. Atlanta was a 4.5-point favorite with the total at 153.5. The two teams combined for 129 points, nowhere near that total. I also said Golden State would come out swinging, so I will take partial credit for that.
What’s Next
| Game | Date | Location | Result / Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | Sat., Oct. 17 | San Francisco | Valkyries 68, Dream 64 |
| Game 2 | Mon., Oct. 19 | San Francisco | Dream 79, Valkyries 65 |
| Game 3 | Wed., Oct. 21 | Atlanta | Dream 97, Valkyries 71 |
| Game 4 | Sat., Oct. 24 | Atlanta | Valkyries 67, Dream 62 |
| Game 5 | Mon., Oct. 26 | San Francisco | 8 p.m. ET |
| Game 6 | Thu., Oct. 29 | Atlanta | 8 p.m. ET |
| Game 7* | Sat., Oct. 31 | San Francisco | 8 p.m. ET |
*If necessary
Game 5 is Monday night in San Francisco, and now it is a best-of-three. Golden State gets two of those three games at home, and Atlanta needs Reese back to her old self and needs to stop giving the ball away.
Somebody is still going to win their first WNBA title before Halloween. It just got a lot more interesting. I am ready for Game 5.
Featured photo: Kiah Stokes of the Golden State Valkyries by John Mac, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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