The Golden State Valkyries dropped Game 2 of the WNBA Finals to the Atlanta Dream, losing 79-65 and evening the series at 1-1 after Monday night’s action at Chase Center in San Francisco. This wasn’t just any loss, though: it was a tough night where Valkyries star Gabby Williams, who’s been an offensive dynamo all season and arguably the top scorer in the WNBA playoffs, shot a brutal 3-for-15 from the floor. That kind of performance from your go-to player in the Finals can swing everything.
UConn’s Heartbeat Runs Through Golden State’s Locker Room
Before the game, Williams chatted on the USA Network broadcast, diving deep into that unbreakable bond she shares with the other three former UConn Huskies on the Valkyries roster: Kiah Stokes, Tiffany Hayes, and Kaitlyn Chen. It’s a special connection, and Williams nailed it when she said, “We do connect on it quite a bit. We always joke about what messages CD [Chris Dailey] and coach send us after the game, because they talk to us like we’re still 19 years old. You carry UConn with you for the rest of your life.” That’s real talk. UConn has been the WNBA’s absolute premier pipeline since the league started, with Geno Auriemma still churning out more professional talent than anyone, even Dawn Staley and South Carolina. At the start of this 2026 season, UConn had a league-high 16 players in the WNBA, way ahead of South Carolina’s 12. Head Coach Natalie Nakase has got the biggest collection of Huskies in Golden State, pulling players from different eras. Tiffany Hayes, who was balling with Maya Moore and Tina Charles back in Storrs, is nearly 15 years removed from her senior season and has played for the Dream, Connecticut, and Las Vegas before landing with the Valkyries last season. Stokes and Williams overlapped for a year, and Kaitlyn Chen, a grad transfer from Princeton, was only under Auriemma for one season but helped them snag that 2025 national title and has forged a surprising WNBA career in just two seasons. Coach Auriemma himself is all-in for Golden State, saying he’s “really proud of all of them” and that the Valkyries are “probably the one team that I’ve watched play the most.” He’s even rooting for them over other UConn alums. You can’t ask for a bigger stamp of approval than that.
A Second Half Struggle Shifts the Series
Despite all that Husky pride and talent, Monday night was a grind. The Valkyries just couldn’t get it going offensively in the second half, putting up only 28 points. That’s a huge problem when you’re trying to win a Finals game, especially when your leading scorer is struggling so much. Williams, who usually just goes off, could only connect on three of her fifteen shots. Contrast that with the UConn exhibition game against Texas on Monday, where the college Huskies were hitting 10 of 18 from beyond the arc. Golden State needed some of that magic. Losing 79-65 means the series is now tied 1-1, and the Dream have all the momentum heading into Game 3. The Valkyries need Williams to bounce back big time. This is the Finals, every shot, every possession, every quarter means everything. They’ve got to find their rhythm and fast if they want to get back on track and make a run for that championship.
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.
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