Valkyries Edge Dream 68-64 in WNBA Finals Game 1 — SkimNews
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- Gabby Williams scored 26 points including four free throws in the final 1:18 to seal the No. 2-seeded Golden State Valkyries' 68-64 Game 1 win over No. 4 seed Atlanta in the best-of-seven WNBA Finals.
- Allisha Gray paced the Dream with 19 points but went scoreless in the fourth quarter, when Atlanta shot 2-for-20 and was outscored 17-8 after the Valkyries had been outscored 17-9 in the third.
- Angel Reese posted 14 points and 12 rebounds but was held scoreless in the second half, and Rhyne Howard finished 3-for-14 from the field as Atlanta went 4-of-25 from three-point range.
- The Valkyries won the rebounding battle 41-35 behind Kaila Charles' 10 boards in 30 bench minutes, with Williams the only Golden State player in double figures.
- Dream coach Karl Smesko attributed the loss to one bad defensive stretch and a cold fourth quarter, calling it 'easier said than done' against the WNBA's top defense.
- The Valkyries earned their first-ever Finals win in their first WNBA Finals appearance and improved to 5-0 at home this postseason; Game 2 is Monday back at Chase Center before the series shifts to Atlanta for Games 3 and 4.
Why it matters: Both teams are chasing a first WNBA championship, and Golden State's 5-0 home playoff record puts them one win from a 2-0 series lead. Dream coach Karl Smesko now needs Atlanta to recover from a fourth-quarter collapse — 2-for-20 shooting — that erased a winnable Game 1 and snapped a 10-game winning streak.
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