NFL
By: Ashmere Prasad
August 6 – San Francisco
The Golden State Valkyries entered Wednesday night’s matchup against the Aces 8th in the standings, one game behind Las Vegas. Rather than solidify their place, they endured back-to-back losses to the Aces, the latest at Chase Center on Wednesday, 78-72.
The Valkyries continued to chip away at their lead but were unable to get a rhythm, ending the game with a season-low nine assists. MVP A’ja Wilson scored a team-high 27 points, 14 of those in the first half.
First quarter woes turned into flows.
Golden State made some stops in the first frame and was able to cut the lead to two. They kept the Aces scoreless for the first three minutes and continued their 14-0 run into the second quarter. It felt like Golden State was getting into a flow, but the Aces responded, scoring 11-of-15 from the field and gained a 43-38 lead going into halftime.
Second Half Struggles
The Valkyries were unable to close the scoring gap in the second half and forced too many mistakes.
Veronica Burton was called for a technical foul in the third quarter and did not return, but she was on the bench. Janelle Salaün (13 points) and Tiffany Hayes (14 points) were the team’s leading scorers. Salaün fouled out with under two minutes in the game. Carla Leite earned a spot in the closing lineup thanks to her aggressive commitment to getting to the basket.
“Well, like you said, we couldn’t find each other, and also our shots were not falling,” Salaün said postgame. “Just the offense wasn’t flowing tonight, let’s just say that. But I think it started from our defense, and when we don’t get stopped after, it’s hard to find rhythm in offense.”
The Valkyries face the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday afternoon for the first time since they signed former Valkyrie Julie Vanloo. The Sparks have won 8 of their last 10, and are slowly moving up in the standings. They are currently half a game back from Golden State. In the Sparks’ win against the Fever on Tuesday, LA became the first team in WNBA history to score 100 or more points in four of five games. (LA Sparks) The Sparks are heating up and finding their chemistry at the right time.
