The WNBA is ready to start its own version of the Final Four.
The Golden State Valkyries punched the final ticket to the party with a 77-73 victory over the Dallas Wings on Friday, Oct. 2 at Chase Center in San Francisco.
Golden State will host the third-seeded Las Vegas Aces on Sunday in Game 1 of a best-of-five semifinals series. It tips off at 4 p.m. ET on NBC.
With Star Wars creator George Lucas in the building amongst a sold-out crowd, the Force was strong with Ballhalla.
“There’s some magic in this building, I swear there is,” Valkyries star Gabby Williams told ESPN after the win.
Here are the winners and losers of the Wings-Valkyries Game 3:
Winners
Valkyries All-Star Gabby Williams
After a rough first half, Gabby Williams put the Valkyries on her back in the fourth quarter, scoring
all eight of the team’s final points with under two minutes to play to seal the victory. The French national team star finished with 19 points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, and was a perfect 4-of-4 from the free-throw line.
“Big shot Gabby. She's our dog. She's our leader,” Valkyries guard Tiffany Hayes said. “She’s the one we go to, and she showed you exactly why she is who she is. So we'll do it again and again, over and over, and we’ll believe in her. It's Gabby (expletive) Williams — what you talking about?”
Williams was also 3-of-6 from beyond the arc and made some big shots in the second half to help Golden State overcome a 16-point deficit. Williams is shooting a career-best 34.2% from 3-point land this season.
“I love these situations. I love high-pressure situations,” Williams said. “I think I'm best when I don't have a choice but to be my best.”
Williams scored a career-high 36 points in Golden State’s Game 2 loss in Dallas. After having that performance overshadowed, she finally got her moment in the spotlight and lifted the Valkyries to their first ever playoff-series win.
Golden State Valkyries fans
The fans who have sold out the Chase Center for 46 consecutive games are going to get more home games in San Francisco. After soccer star Megan Rapinoe attended Game 1, legendary filmmaker George Lucas showed up for Game 3.
“What’s up, George Lucas? That’s pretty cool,” Williams said with a laugh during her postgame interview.
Celebrities are starting to realize that Ballhalla creates an electric environment for WNBA games.
“I loved it,” Williams said of the crowd noise. “Because it forced us to talk louder and communicate more. When you're screaming more, then your energy's up and you're into it. So, yeah, we definitely owe Ballhalla a big thank you for tonight.”
Valkyries defense when it matters most
In the regular season, the Valkyries dominated defensively and limited opponents to a league-low 75.1 points per game.
That defensive identity faltered as they lost Game 2, where the Wings took a 108-100 victory at home thanks to a playoff-record 45 points from Arike Ogunbowale. Golden State’s defense didn’t look elite in the first three quarters of Game 3 either, as Ogunbowale scored 21 points in less than 25 minutes.
But when it mattered most, Golden State limited the Wings to 14 points in the final frame, scoring 10 second-chance points in that period and limiting the Wings to three. The Valkyries did that while notching six stocks (steals and blocks) in the period.
Losers
Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers
In the biggest game of her WNBA career so far, Paige Bueckers struggled to find a rhythm offensively. She finished with 17 points and six assists, but shot 3-of-14 from the floor and 1-of-4 from 3-point land. If Bueckers was just a bit sharper with her shooting in this crucial win-or-go-home game, it might’ve turned out differently for the Wings.
Still, Wings coach Jose Fernandez wasn’t willing to put any of the blame on Bueckers after the loss.
"Paige is taking it hard, right? Because she carries the load and she’s a winner. That’s why she’s one of the best players in the world. This series should not have any type of inkling on the year she had for us,” Fernandez said. “We only get to this point because of Paige. She's a first-team All-WNBA player. She takes a lot of ownership and a heavy load, and the great ones do."
Arike Ogunbowale added: “She willed us throughout the whole season.”
Dallas Wings bench
Similar to the defending champion Las Vegas Aces in their Game 3 win against the Indiana Fever on Thursday night, the Wings got less than 10 points from their bench in Friday’s loss to the Valkyries.
The difference for the Aces is they were able to rely on a combined 77 points from their Big 3 (A’ja Wilson, Jackie Young, Chelsea Gray) to eliminate the Fever, but Arike Ogunbowale took the majority of the scoring of Dallas’ load with 30 points.
The Wings’ next high scorers were Paige Bueckers (17 points) and Jessica Shepard (12 points).
The Valkyries, on the other hand, benefitted from Tiffany Hayes scoring 18 points off the bench.
The Wings needed more from their reserves, especially considering that coach Jose Fernandez only cycled through three players outside of his starters (Alysha Clark, Odyssey Simms and Aziaha James) who each scored three points or less.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: WNBA playoff winners and losers include Valkyries defense, Paige Bueckers
