The Golden State Valkyries continued their road trip on Tuesday when they visited the Atlanta Dream for the second time this season. After a close game throughout the first half, they built a big lead after the third quarter. The Valkyries struggled to score in the fourth quarter, giving up the lead with three minutes to go. They recovered on defense though and got the two scores that they needed for a big 77-75 win to avoid a poor start to this swing.
The Lineup
Monique Billings was healthy enough to return, allowing Golden State to field a two-post lineup against Atlanta for the second time. She joined Temi Fagbenle in the frontcourt with Janelle Salaun sliding over to small forward as Veronica Burton and Tiffany Hayes started at the guard spots again. Unfortunately, Billings did reaggravate the injury and did not return in the second half.
First Quarter
The first point of the game came in an unfortunately familiar situation for the Valkyries when they were whistled for a defensive three seconds violation and the Dream hit the technical free throw. Tiffany Hayes scored on the first possession for Golden State, but a Janelle Salaun basket ended up being the only other score before the media timeout. After that break, Monique Billings scored and hit a free throw before Cecilia Zandalasini restored the lead with a three-pointer. The bench scoring continued when Laeticia Amihere scored on a drive and Carla Leite broke out of her three-point shooting slump before hitting two free throws. Zandalasini hit another shot from beyond the arc for a 20-16 lead at the end of the quarter.
Second Quarter
It was Cecilia Zandalasini who hit a third three-pointer to start the quarter on the right note for the Valkyries on the very first possession. Atlanta hit their own trio of shots from distance to tie the score as the teams went back and forth. Golden State built a lead with three unanswered baskets, but the Dream took the lead on a quick 9-0 run in under two minutes. Tiffany Hayes was able to get some momentum heading into halftime though with a basket on the final possession.
Third Quarter
Tiffany Hayes scored the first two baskets for the Valkyries in this half, but a pair of Jordin Canada three-pointers gave the Dream the lead back. Cecilia Zandalasini scored next though to ignite a 12-0 Golden State run that ended with a pair of Veronica Burton baskets. Atlanta did score, but the Valkyries continued a great shooting display with makes from Carla Leite and Kate Martin before Laeticia Amihere scored right before the buzzer for a 69-56 lead.
Fourth Quarter
Atlanta quickly made the game close again with points on their first four possessions, but Carla Leite scored the first basket for the Valkyries. There was another offensive drought before Tiffany Hayes could score, but Golden State’s defense kept the lead. That changed after the Hayes basket though as the Dream broke through on three straight trips down the floor to take the lead. Cecilia Zandalasini answered back to tie the score and then both teams failed to build an advantage for the next two and a half minutes. The flow of the game was not helped by multiple delays from timeouts and other stoppages. Atlanta had the ball out of a timeout, but Zandalasini got a key steal to give the Valkyries a chance at the final shot in regulation. It was Zandalasini again who was able to score with three seconds remaining and the Dream missed the final shot for 77-75 Valkyries win.
The Verdict
This was going to be a tough game for Golden State and they certainly had to battle to stay competitive in the first half before using a fantastic third quarter to take the lead. Some of the late game struggles from previous games reared their head again, but they did just enough to leave with a win. The result of the other game at the same time means that the next game for the Valkyries against the Washington Mystics will be between teams tied in the loss column trying to make the playoffs.
Player of the Game
This award will go to Cecilia Zandalasini for this game after she was asked to adapt again by coming off of the bench after some time in the starting lineup. She responded by leading the team in both scoring and rebounding as she still played major minutes. In the last minute, she secured the key steal and then scored the basket that ended up winning the game after tying the game earlier. On a team looking for consistent shooting, she has continued to be a valuable contributor being asked to take on a variety of roles from game to game.
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