Golden State 92, Toronto 81
By the Numbers
- The Valkyries drew their 38th regular-season sellout and 39th consecutive sellout on Sunday night.
- The Valkyries and Chase Freedom raised $98,000 for the Golden State Community Foundation across the team's August 2 and August 4 wins against the Toronto Tempo. The games were played on the Valkyries’ first-ever custom court at Ballhalla, and the only co-branded partner court in the WNBA this season thus far, with Chase Freedom donating $1,000 for every basket made by the Valkyries during the two-game slate. The funds will support youth development and education programs across the Bay Area.
- Janelle Salaün led the Valkyries in scoring with 21 points on 8-12 (66.7 percent) shooting from the field and 4-6 (66.7 percent) shooting from deep. Tonight was Salaün’s fourth straight game scoring in double figures, and second straight with 20+ points.
- Kayla Thornton added 20 points, shooting 6-10 (60.0 percent) from the floor and 4-7 (57.1 percent) from 3.
- Veronica Burton added 12 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to go with zero turnovers. It’s Burton’s sixth career game with 10+ points, 5+ assists and zero turnovers.
- Gabby Williams added 10 points and seven rebounds, and eclipsed the 2,000-career points plateau.
- Kiah Stokes posted seven points, seven rebounds and a pair of blocks. Stokes entered Tuesday’s contest second in the league in blocks per game (1.9).
- Tiffany Hayes scored 12 points with four rebounds, four assists and a season-high four steals off the bench.
- Golden State put up 90+ points for the second straight game, the third time this season the Valkyries have scored 90+ points in consecutive games.
Quotes
HEAD COACH NATALIE NAKASE:
ON SHIFTING GEARS IN THE SECOND HALF:
“I think they respond really well with goal setting. I thought that Landon [Tatum] did a great job in some of these timeouts when I lost my voice. Landon stepped up and he got in there and he gave them a couple goals. You could tell that they were really focused on what he gave them, and then everyone just stepped up a level. I thought we ball pressured a lot better, and then you saw Tip [Tiffany] Hayes just playing football at their interception, and that led us to transition, and she put us in transition with spacing. We're trying to get room to spray out threes. So credit to our staff, [they] did an amazing job.”
ON KAYLA THORNTON:
“Her [Kayla Thornton’s] approach today was at a high level, and then once she sees that first one go in, it is trouble. Credit to her teammates for continuing to find the hot hand, but she does a really great job of just staying in the pocket of where she needs to go…And then her confidence. I really love her defense. I thought she came in with a sense of physicality that no one was going to get in there unless they were going to go through her, and so her startup at the defensive end to me was really impressive. I know she can knock that down with her eyes closed.”
ON GABBY WILLIAMS:
“I thought she did a really good job. She had six rebounds in the first half. When teams go small versus us, Gabby [Williams] kind of really extends herself with her hustle. Then in the second half, almost the same way as KT [Kayla Thornton], [she] just got it done. She pressured the ball, she created havoc, she deflected a lot of passes, she led us into the offense as well; just because she's pressuring the ball, and then closing for us. I thought her, Tip [Tiffany Hayes] and V [Veronica Burton] did a great job of continuing to share the ball and punching when they saw pockets, or if someone was in foul trouble, they attacked them. Really intentional offense towards the end, but more importantly, keeping [the Toronto Tempo] to 14 in the fourth. That's tough. So it's our defense that is always going to win out.”
GOLDEN STATE FORWARD JANELLE SALAÜN AND FORWARD KAYLA THORNTON:
ON HER PERFORMANCE TONIGHT:
Thornton: “[I was] just shooting the ball, doing what the defense gives me, and just staying consistent and putting the work in. My teammates trust me, and I trust them, and [we] just make it happen…It felt good. Shout out to my teammates for finding me, and like I said, the time that I put into my work and going out there, [I’m] just doing what the defense gives me. Shoutout to my teammates.”
ON TURNING THE GAME AROUND:
Thornton: Shout out to Toronto, [they’re] a very great team. We just weren't clicking on defense, so we had to come together and figure out what we needed to do. I think we did a great job with that when we all are collectively on the same page.”
ON HOPES OF WINNING BOTH WNBA AND WORLD CUP TITLES:
Salaün: “Both, I want to win both…Neither [is going to be easiest to win], neither for sure. I’m lucky to play on multiple teams and with great players. It’s not going to be easy, and this is why I love the sport.”
Up Next: The Valkyries travel to Dallas to face the Wings on Friday, August 7, tipping off at 6:30 p.m. PT on ION, 95.7 The Game, the Audacy App, and ESPN 1320.
