Category: Dallas Wings

Golden State Valkyries forward (#1) Gabby Williams, right, shoots against Dallas Wings guard (#5) Paige Bueckers during the first half of Game 3 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series, Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, in San Francisco. (Photo credits to AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

By Michael Villanueva

SAN FRANCISCO – On the first Friday night of October in Ballhalla, the Golden State Valkyries faced a win-or-go-home situation against the Dallas Wings in the 2026 WNBA First Round playoffs. The Valkyries had an explosive fourth-quarter performance, putting up 23 points. Their efforts and the team’s determination punched their ticket to the WNBA semifinals. Golden State Valkyries would take the series over the Dallas Wings 2-1 in the First Round.

Back in Game 2 of this round one battle between Golden State and Dallas. The Wings took advantage of playing on their home court and got the Win. Dallas Arike Ogunbowale dropped 45 points in that game to keep the Wings’ postseason alive. While the Valkyries Gabby Williams retaliated with 19 points in that one, it wasn’t enough for Golden State.

The Wings sent out Paige Bueckers, Jessica Shepard, Maddy Siegrist, Arike Ogunbowale, and Awak Kuier for their starting five with hopes of the team moving on to the next round. The Wings are trying to reach the semifinals for the second time in six postseason appearances since moving to the Dallas area in 2016. Paige Bueckers, the 2025 No. 1 overall pick and Rookie of the Year who is in her first playoff series, dropped 10 points and four assists in game 2.

Golden State’s Friday night starting five to keep their postseason alive is Veronica Burton, Kiah Stokes, Gabby Williams, Kayla Thornton, and Cecilia Zandalasini. The Valkyries are trying to advance in the playoffs for the first time in the franchise’s second season. The Valkyries record in Ballhalla this season and in the postseason is 16-5 heading into this game.

In the first quarter, Dallas took it to Golden State. The Valkyries have a history of playing better basketball at home, so the Wings wanted to come at them and put Golden State in an awkward position to start the game. On every shot attempt, Dallas would crash the paint and fight for the rebound. The Wings were securing rebounds early in the game, which led to them getting points on the board through second chances.

At halftime, Dallas had the lead over Golden State, 44-37. Both teams were struggling shooting from deep; both of them were shooting under 23% at the three-point line. However, Wing’s Arike Ogunbowale powers a late second-quarter surge to open up a 7-point halftime lead on the Valkyries. Ogunbowale would put up 17 points by herself in the first half.

Going into the third quarter, Golden State was still struggling on their offense and was letting Dallas set the tone coming back from halftime. Although the Wings had more turnovers than the Valkyries, Dallas had 6 and Golden State had 3. The Wings were still making shots in the paint while the Valkyries couldn’t get anything to fall early in the third quarter.

Halfway in the third quarter, the Valkyries missed their last 12 shot attempts, which led the Wings to push their lead to double digits. Dallas went on an 18-0 scoring run during the Valkyries shooting struggle, with six minutes left. The Wings’ lead would jump to 16 points, 53-37. Valkyries would also go 2-15 in the third quarter.

At the end of the third quarter, the score would be 59-54, with Dallas holding the lead over Golden State. However, the Valkyries were starting to see shots going in, and that finally set the spark they needed to get back in this game. With Golden State playing catch-up in the final minutes, Kaila Charles would make a big three-pointer to tie the game 65-65, halfway in the fourth quarter.

With four minutes left in the game, Valkyries Tiffany Hayes would foul Arike Ogunbowale, which would send her to the free-throw line. Ogunbowale would make both of her free throws and give Dallas back the lead, 70-67. Going into the final two minutes, Golden State would go on an 8-0 scoring run; 6 of those points belong to Gabby Williams.

With no timeouts left for Dallas as the game enters the final thirteen seconds, with the Valkyries holding a 1-point lead over the Wings, 73-72. Gabby Williams would try her best to put Dallas away. The Valkyries would give Williams the ball, and she would drive it to the paint, get fouled, and make her free throws. She would extend Golden State’s lead to three points, 75-72. In Dallas’s final moments of hope, Paige Buckers would miss a running pull-up 3-point jumper.

As the clock winds down, the Golden State Valkyries claim the final spot in the WNBA Semi-Finals. Golden State was led by Veronica Burton, who put up 16 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists. This playoff series win is the first ever in franchise history for Golden State. The Valkyries will face reigning champions, the Las Vegas Aces, with a trip to the WNBA Finals on the line.

Golden State Valkyries’ Tiffany Hayes (15) celebrates a 3-point basket by Golden State Valkyries’ Veronica Burton (22) against the Dallas Wings in the second quarter at the Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on Monday, Aug. 17, 2026. (Photot credits to Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

By Michael Villanueva

SAN FRANCISCO – The Golden State Valkyries started the week off with a win, and clinched their spot in the playoffs for the second time in the team’s second year in the WNBA. On Monday night, the Valkyries knew that with a win tonight, they could clinch a spot for the postseason, and they did. The team hosted and defeated the Dallas Wings in front of another sellout crowd with the final score of 78-70. The Valkyries are also now on a 6-game winning streak that will slowly secure their spot for the second seed in the playoff bracket.

The Dallas Wings came into this game holding on to the last spot of the playoffs, and trying to get as many wins as they can so they can hold on to it. However, Dallas just came back from a loss while on the first stop of their two-game road trip back in Indiana, and is so far 10-9 on the road. Also, in their last 10 games, they have gone 3-7. So they started guards Paige Bueckers, Arike Ogunbowale, forwards Jessica Shepard, Alysha Clark, and center Alanna Smith.

Valkyries have been shocking the league and showing the WNBA world that they are ready and want to play in the postseason. Golden State was on a 5-game winning streak, now on a 6-game winning streak, and have gone 8-2 in their last 10 games. They also hold the second-place seed in the WNBA. So they went with guards Veronica Burton, Gabby Williams, forwards Kayla Thornton, Cecilia Zandalasini, and center Kiah Stokes.

The game would get going with some hot shooting from both teams. This game has so much meaning for both of these teams’ playoff hopes, so the Valkyries and Wings were locked in. Wings Alanna Smith and Valkyries Kayla Thornton start it off with 3-pointers for each other. After that, Dallas and Golden State’s defense picked up. However, Golden State would end the first on a 12-4 scoring run, and hold a 1-point lead at the end. That 1-point lead would come from Valkyries’ Tiffany Hayes by hitting a deep 3-pointer (33-foot) for Golden State.

In the 2nd quarter, the Valkyries and Wings didn’t slow down on their defensive plan. Both teams were starting to make every shot more difficult and contested each other. Especially Golden State started to take advantage of Dallas turnovers by stealing their passes and making it difficult for Dallas to spread the ball. With that, the Valkyries were able to find some momentum and go on an 11-2 scoring run halfway through the 2nd quarter.

At halftime, Golden State would extend their lead to 16 points over Dallas with the score at 44-28. Dallas’s second quarter performance was very poor, and they were able to score only 9-points in the second alone. While Golden State would go on and drop 24 points altogether, the Valkyries had already made eight 3-pointers so far.

At the start of the 3rd quarter, Dallas would come in with some energy, especially from Wings Alysha Clark, who would make a 25-foot three pointer jumper. After that, the Wings found a little offensive rhythm and would get the lead to 10-points from Golden State, 39-49. Then shortly, the Wings were able to cut it as low as 8 points, 46-54.

Though the Valkyries were not gonna let up, and kept giving the Wings no more optimism. Golden State would hit some tough shots and not slow down on their drives to the paint on transition breaks. At the start of the 4th quarter, the lead would jump to its largest of the night for Golden State with a 18-point lead over Dallas, 46-64.

All of the 4th quarter was Dallas’ last efforts to try and come back and win this game. The Wings would drop 24 points in the 4th, but it still wasn’t enough. Valkyries guard Gabby Williams would lead Golden State to a win with her 23 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists. She got lots of help from her teammate Veronica Burton, who would drop 16 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals. Golden State has now gone 3-0 in the season series against Dallas.

Golden State will get a short rest, but have some comfort in their mind knowing they have clinched a spot in the postseason. The Valkyries return to Ballhalla on Wednesday, August 19th, to host the 1st place team in the WNBA, the Minnesota Lynx. The Lynx are coming off a win just two days ago against the Las Vegas Aces, 92-87. The game will be broadcast live on USA Network at 7 p.m.

Golden State Valkyries Cecilia Zandalasini drvies to the paint on Dallas Wings Azzi Fudd at Chase Center in San Francisco, CA on June 17th, 2026. (Photo credits to Bob Kupbens Imagn Images)

By Michael Villanueva

SAN FRANCISCO – The Golden State Valkyries have now won their last four games in a row, as they hosted and defeated the Dallas Wings. This was the Valkyries’ second of three home games this week, and so far, they have won every home game. After having a rough start and going down 12 points, the Valkyries would come back and get the win against the Wings, 91-80. This was also the Valkyries tenth win of the season.

The Valkyries are on a four game winning streak. Golden State sent out Kayla Thornton, Gabby Williams, Kiah Stokes, Cecilia Zandalasini, and Veronica Burton. No changes or switches, as these were the same starters as in their last game on Monday evening. Golden State Gabby Williams is averaging 1.8 steals per game, which is sixth best in the WNBA.

The Dallas Wings have won six of their last eighth games coming into this game. So Dallas sent out Paige Bueckers, Arike Ogunbowale, Azzi Fudd, Awak Kuier, and Jessica Shepard, hoping to make the team win seven of their last nine games. In their last game, Arike Ogunbowale led the team with her 22 points, seven assists, four rebounds, and went 5-of-11 from deep.

Dallas started the game solidly, going 5-of-9 on the floor. Wings Awak Kuier got the first bucket of the night on a driving layup. Their shooting got the Wings an early lead halfway through the first quarter. While Golden State saw some early struggles and has already gotten itself five turnovers. The quarter would end with Dallas having a 9-point lead, 26-17.

With Golden State’s 6 turnovers starting the second quarter, the Valkyries were still on attack mode against Dallas. Valkyries Gabby Williams would hit a 23-foot three-pointer to cut the lead to two points, 30-28. In the next possession, Williams would get another shot to fall from deep to give the Valkyries their first lead of the night. Then, Valkyries Kayla Thornton would knock down a three pointer of her own and extend the team’s lead, 35-30.

Golden State went on a 16-0 run, while Dallas would miss their last ten shots in a row. The Valkyries hustle on the rebounds, and getting second chance shots has gotten them back, and overall hold control of the game. By the end of the 2nd quarter, the Valkyries hold their largest lead of the night so far at 11 points, 44-33. The Valkyries would outscore the Wings, 31-9, in the first half.

At the start of the third quarter, Golden State would get themselves another turnover, but their first since the 1st quarter. Then Wings Azzi Fudd gets the first shot of the second half with a midrange jumper shot. With both teams locking in on their perimeter defense, the Valkyries would still find a way to attack and cut out a pass to their shooters. Golden State holds the lead at the end of the 3rd quarter, 64-62

In the final quarter of the game, Dallas would try every effort to cut the lead. The Wings saw the closest to getting back the lead at seven points, 71-64. However, Ballhalla would come alive as the fans’ energy gave the Valkyries energy to close out this game. With just three minutes left, the score was Valkyries lead, 81-76, and the Wings were still trying to take this win on the road.

Valkyries Kaitlin Chen would take over the rest of the game, as she drives to the paint, absorbs the contact, and gets the shot to go in. Both teams were able to see a lot of success in the paint, as they both got over 30 and more points in the paint. As the time winds down, Valkyries Kaila Charles would get the offensive rebound and make the layup to push the lead to nine points, 87-78.

As the game reached the end, it would be the home team, the Valkyries, getting the win and making it their fourth in a row. Five Valkyrie players would finish the game in double-digit scoring, but were led by Gabby Williams. Gabby Williams would finish the game with 22 points, second rebounds, and four assists.

The Golden State Valkyries will play their third and final home game of the week as they host the Minnesota Lynx. The two teams will play each other on Friday at 7 p.m. Minnesota won their first matchup in Minnesota, 87-84, earlier this month on June 4th. The game will be broadcast live on ION.