The Golden State Valkyries just pulled off a HUGE road win, taking down the Atlanta Dream 67-62 in Game 4 on Saturday afternoon. That’s right, the Finals are now tied up at 2-2 heading back to the Bay Area for a pivotal Game 5 on Monday. This series just got *real*.
Valkyries Made the Moves, Dream Had No Answer Early
Listen, those two off days between Games 3 and 4? Golden State used every single second to draw up some serious adjustments, and boy, did they pay off. They flipped the script on turnovers, absolutely dominating Atlanta 16-4 in the first half of that battle. That possession advantage meant they got off 21 more shots than the Dream by halftime, piling up 16 points directly from Atlanta’s mistakes. The offense? It smoothed out for one of their best shooting performances of the entire Finals. We saw a 16-point first-half lead, punctuated by a massive 9-0 run from Cecilia Zandalasini, Gabby Williams, and Veronica Burton. You could feel the energy shift, even with a low-scoring first quarter after they switched up the starting lineup, bringing in Kaila Charles and Tiffany Hayes for Zandalasini and Kayla Thornton. These Valkyries came to play.
Shutting Down the Star and the Clutch Finish
The biggest adjustment, though? They went after Angel Reese. Hard. They sent bodies at her all day, making her life way more difficult than in the last two games where she was just taking over. Reese finished with a quiet 8 points and 9 rebounds. Think about that: she didn’t score a single point in the first quarter, and by halftime, she had just 4 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 personal fouls, plus a whopping 5 turnovers. Atlanta tried to claw their way back, finding a path to the free throw line. Midway through the third, the Dream had been to the line 24 times, but only converted 16. The Valkyries? A much more efficient 7-of-8 from the stripe. Rookie Isobel Borlase even hit a huge 3-pointer late in the third to cut the lead to six and get the crowd buzzing. But Golden State didn’t buckle. Veronica Burton, looking way more aggressive, hit a clutch 3-pointer with 4:23 left in the game, and then sealed it with a floater with just over 30 seconds left to give the Valkyries just enough breathing room to close it out.
Now, it’s back to the Bay Area for Game 5 on Monday. The winner of that game heads back to Atlanta with a chance to clinch the WNBA Finals in Game 6. The Dream haven’t even locked down the arena for that potential Game 6 yet, which tells you everything about the chaos of a tight series like this. Get ready, because this series is officially a war!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
Leave a Reply