By the Numbers
- The Valkyries drew a sell-out crowd of 18,064, their 48th straight sellout dating back to last season.
- Gabby Williams recorded her first career postseason double-double (and third total in her career) with 25 points and 11 total rebounds, leading the Valkyries in scoring while adding five assists. Williams shot 9-18 (50 percent), including 4-7 (57%) from the three-point line.
- Williams tied her postseason high for points in a quarter with 13, and points in a half with 18.
- Williams is the ninth player in WNBA postseason history to have at least 25 points, 10 rebounds and five assists while shooting 50 percent or better from the field.
- Kaitlyn Chen recorded 11 points for Golden State, while adding three rebounds and one block.
- Aminata Gueye recorded a career postseason high of nine points, shooting 4-5 (80 percent) from the field and a perfect 1-1 from the line. Gueye also added two rebounds, two steals, one assist, and one block.
- Kayla Thornton grabbed a postseason career-high 11 rebounds while scoring eight points.
- Kiah Stokes grabbed a game-high 14 total rebounds, seven of them defensive, and game-high four blocks. Stokes is the first postseason player since 2012 with 11 or more rebounds, seven or more offensive boards, and 4 or more blocks.
- Golden State grabbed a franchise-high 52 rebounds (regular or postseason), 35 of which came defensively. The Valkyries limited the Aces to just two offensive boards.
- The 52 rebounds are tied for the third most in WNBA postseason history.
- Tonight’s win marks the Valkyries’ first victory against the Aces this season. The Valkyries held Las Vegas to just 60 points, their fewest point total in 2026 and fewest in the postseason since October 3, 2021.
Quotes
HEAD COACH NATALIE NAKASE:
ON MOTIVATING THE TEAM:
“I think I'm lucky, I don't have to motivate. I think that's who they are, and that goes back to the intentional selections of the players. If I have to motivate you, then you probably shouldn't be here. We talk about [The Golden State] Valkyries, we talk about the community, we talk about the support that we get. It's a privilege to play here. It's a privilege to be the 14 players that get to play in front of 18,000 screaming fans. So, there's no motivation coming from me. Now, there might be some accountability that I have to do, but these guys want to win. They came here, number one, to defend because that's our identity, and to keep that under control and to make sure that's our superpower. But at the end of the day, they're [innately] competitive inside.”
ON KIAH STOKES:
“MVP of the game tonight. Her disruption, her matching up with A'ja [Wilson] is a really tough task, and I thought she did an amazing job. Just continuing to keep her off rhythm as much as we can. But also, team effort, too. She's going to give credit to her teammates for communicating behind. Also, rebounding—I thought Kiah was vicious on the boards….I thought today Kiah was emptying that tank. And that's the Kiah Stokes that we know. She made the difference tonight. She's huge.”
ON GABBY WILLIAMS’ PASSION FOR BALLHALLA:
“She and V [Veronica Burton] are leaders of our culture while being a humble star…She [Gabby Williams] has a home here. And then secondly, Ballhalla, it's a difference-maker, for sure. You can see when the girls go out there and play their hearts out, and Ballhalla is responding, or they're [Ballhalla’s] initiating it and we're responding, it's just a complete team atmosphere. Ballhala is part of us…It's the culture, it's Oakland, it's Ballhalla, it's the Bay. I could go on and on…I think it's everything. I think people here are intentional, and they want to see amazing basketball, and they want to empower women.”
GOLDEN STATE FORWARD GABBY WILLIAMS AND CENTER KIAH STOKES:
ON HOLDING LAS VEGAS TO A SEASON-LOW IN SCORING:
Williams: “We were really connected. We were really, really connected tonight. I felt we were communicating. I felt we were showing them bodies, and then it came down to rebounding. I said after the game that KT [Kayla Thornton]and Kiah [Stokes] really won this game for us, limited them to one possession and then gave us extra possession.”
ON HER PERFORMANCE TONIGHT:
Stokes: “I know what I can bring to this team. To be honest, I didn't really like how I played during the regular season against the [Las Vegas] Aces. So just mentally, I was coming in like, ‘It's now or never. This is the semis; there's no time to think too much about it.’ I just knew what I had to do. Shout-out to my teammates for trusting me, but this was definitely a team win.”
ON AMINATA GUEYE:
Williams: “She's fearless, and obviously, I've known her for a while now. Coach Nat [Natalie Nakase] was asking me about her, and I was like, ‘Throw her in. That girl is ready. That girl is ready.’ It gives Kiah [Stokes] a break so then Kiah can come back in with fresh legs. But Ami [Aminata Gueye], I mean, she just knows how to hoop. She's physical, she works really, and that's exactly what our identity is. So I think that's why she fits in so well.”
Up Next: The No. 2-seed Valkyries will host the No. 3-seed Las Vegas Aces for Game 2 of the WNBA Semifinals on Wednesday, October 7 at 6:30 p.m. at Chase Center, airing on NBC Sports Network, Peacock, 95.7 The Game, ESPN 1320 and the Audacy App.
