The Portland Fire weren’t able to keep up with the Golden State Valkyries, falling 86-69 at home. It was an early lead for the Valkyries that they never relinquished, maintaining a double-digit advantage for most of the game on their way to the blowout victory.
The Fire were led by Megan DiLeo and Emily Engstler, who both finished with 12 points in the contest. Bridget Carleton also had 11 points as the only other player in double figures.
Golden State’s leading scorer was Tiffany Hayes who finished
with 18 points in the game. Kayla Thornton was second on the team with 17 points.
Here are some key takeaways from the game:
Poor Three-Point Shooting
Portland shoots a lot of threes and relies on them going in as part of their core game plan. However, on nights like this where the Fire make just 10 of their 39 attempts from deep (good for just 25.6% from behind the arc), you can’t expect the game to have gone very well. The Valkyries didn’t shoot much better, just 31.0% from behind the arc, but took 10 less shots from distance. That over-reliance from Portland is what forced them behind early in the game, and what kept them from being able to make a run as the threes became more and more necessary for a comeback attempt.
Slow Start
The Fire struggled out of the gates to find offensive opportunities that they could capitalize on. Add in a lot of made shots from Golden State, and you get a game that was over soon into the contest. An 11-0 run from the Valkyries pushed the lead to 28-9 with a minute left in the first quarter. From there, they never looked back. Portland was able to string together some baskets at different points in the game, but at no point did they truly look like they were challenging the lead that Golden State held throughout.
The Valkyries’ lead topped out at 26 points in the game and they led almost end-to-end. An Engstler basket to make the score 4-2 early in the contest would be the last lead the Fire held.
Familiar Opponent
This game against Golden State is the first of three games between the two teams in the final five games of the season. Portland will have a lot to work on to change their fate the next time they matchup with the Valks. However, Golden State won’t just roll over, despite having secured their playoff spot. Seeding is still up in the air, and the Valkyries might need every win they can get down the stretch to secure the best possible placement for them heading into the playoffs.
For Portland that means they will have to do whatever they can to stop Golden State from turning the next two games into a repeat of this contest. How exactly they can do that remains to be seen, as a team as talented as the Valkyries is tough to stop. But it will be a great test of the resolve this team has late in the season as a measuring stick for next year.
Up Next
Box Score
There’s a long break in the action for international play coming up. The Portland Fire are back at home on Thursday, September 17th to face the Phoenix Mercury at 7pm Pacific.
