Williams takes over when it counts
Golden State needed two seasons. On Saturday night at Chase Center, the Valkyries beat the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals and became champions in their second year of existence. It was the first Game 7 the league’s championship series has ever produced.
Gabby Williams decided it. She scored 30 points on 10-of-23 shooting, played 38 of the 40 minutes and was named Finals MVP. With the game tied at 53 midway through the fourth quarter, she hit a 31-foot three with 2:18 left to make it 60-57. Kiah Stokes tipped in a miss, free throws followed, and the lead was 64-57 inside the final minute. The Dream had no answer in the closing minutes.
Williams also left with two Finals records, 137 career points and 18 career steals. Her 30 were the second-most she has scored in a playoff game, behind a 36-point night in the first round.
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Atlanta never found its shot
The Dream started with about five scoreless minutes, missing eight straight shots and turning it over four times. Golden State led 8-0 before Atlanta had settled. The Dream recovered to build a nine-point lead in the third quarter, but they shot 33.3% for the night (23 of 69) and went 6 of 30 from three. Jordin Canada led them with 18 points and Allisha Gray added 16. Angel Reese pulled down 12 rebounds but scored only eight.
Stokes was the reason Reese stayed quiet. She finished with 13 rebounds and two blocks, and her 19 blocks across the series are a Finals record. Veronica Burton posted 10 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and Tiffany Hayes scored 11. The Valkyries hit only 5 of 20 threes, and Williams’ one mattered more than the other four combined.
Dream coach Karl Smesko said slow starts cost his team and that the opening minutes couldn’t be won back. Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase pointed to the roster she built: players left unprotected in the expansion draft, international signings and one key free-agent addition. The crowd of 18,064 at Chase Center, a building that has sold out every home game in franchise history, roared back when owner Joe Lacob shouted the arena’s nickname, “Ballhalla”, during the trophy ceremony.
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