San Francisco, CA – The Golden State Valkyries weathered a massive third quarter from Washington and closed strong in the fourth to escape with a 74-69 victory at Chase Center Saturday night for their ninth consecutive win. Veronica Burton ran the offense masterfully, finishing with 11 points and 11 assists against just one turnover in 32 minutes to power a Golden State team that held on despite giving up 29 points in the third.
“It was a really good gutsy win,” Burton said postgame. “We made a lot of winning plays and a lot of different people stepped up.”
Gabby Williams led all scorers with 18 points on 7 of 15 shooting, adding five assists and three steals. Kayla Thornton was sharp off the bench, nailing three of six attempts from three and finishing with 11 points. Golden State’s bench outscored Washington’s reserves 25-16, a margin that proved to be the difference.
Washington made things uncomfortable in the third, going on an 8-0 run to take a five-point lead heading into the fourth. But the Valkyries responded with a 12-0 stretch of their own late, fueled by back-to-back threes from Thornton, Stokes, Burton, and Williams to put it away for good.
Coach Natalie Nakase pointed to Burton’s composure as the thing that kept Golden State together throughout. “V just kept leading, she kept supporting, she kept encouraging,” Nakase said. “She pressed everyone’s buttons perfectly tonight – what they needed.”
Shakira Austin was dominant for Washington, posting a double-double with 18 points and 16 rebounds. The Mystics also controlled the paint 40-16 and out-rebounded Golden State 45-31. But 14 turnovers, which the Valkyries converted into 22 points, proved too costly to overcome.
Golden State hosts Washington again Monday night at Chase Center.