Valkyries Rout Wings 104-80 in WNBA Playoff Opener, Emerge as Title Contender

On Sunday night in San Francisco, the Golden State Valkyries took a 36-point lead over the Dallas Wings in the second half and coasted home to a 104-80 win in the opener of their best-of-three WNBA playoff series. It was the kind of result that changes how a team is talked about the morning after.

The game was close for one quarter. Golden State won the first 21-20. Then the second quarter went 37-11 in the Valkyries' favor, and the Wings were effectively finished by halftime. Dallas coach Jose Fernandez pulled star Paige Bueckers with 3:59 left in the third quarter. She did not return, and Dallas essentially conceded the night.

The Valkyries set team records for points in a game, points in a quarter (37) and points in a half (58). They also matched their franchise high for 3-pointers made, with 18. Forward Cecilia Zandalasini scored 22 points in just 17 minutes, which the report describes as a WNBA postseason record for that amount of playing time. Golden State has not lost to Dallas this year and was not seriously threatened in any of the four meetings.

Fernandez laid out what his team needed to do: limit turnovers, especially live-ball turnovers, keep the ball in front of them, and guard the arc. Live-ball turnovers hurt them in the first half, he said, and the Wings did neither of the other two things. Bueckers was brief about the second quarter. "A thirty-seven-point quarter is insane work," she said.

The league picture helped Golden State too. Top-seeded Minnesota lost its opener to the New York Liberty, who won the title two years ago and still have many of those players. The series shifts to New York for Game 2 on Tuesday. The Mercury News analysis argues that the Lynx are in trouble, though it cautions that Minnesota, the league's best regular-season team, shouldn't be counted out. If results hold, the Valkyries could have home-court advantage for the rest of the playoffs, which raises the question of whether they are now the team to beat.

That home court was hard-earned. Golden State secured it for a potential semifinal by mounting a comeback against the Los Angeles Sparks in its final regular-season game. Now the Valkyries travel to Dallas for Game 2 on Wednesday. A win would end the series and give them a travel day plus two full days in the Bay Area to prepare for their next opponent, likely the Las Vegas Aces, who beat the Indiana Fever in Game 1 on Sunday. Zandalasini kept the focus narrow. "We're really thinking on to the next one, to be honest," she said. "So it's just one game."

Coach Natalie Nakase took a moment to acknowledge the crowd, which was experiencing its first playoff game and win in San Francisco. Last season the Valkyries played their only playoff game in San Jose, after a last-minute move to SAP Center because of a scheduling conflict with the Laver Cup at Chase Center. "You can see the whole Ballhalla community is more connected," Nakase said. She said she appreciated the fans last year and appreciates them even more now, because they are growing and getting better, and the team wants to get better together.

The next test comes Wednesday in Dallas, where Golden State can close out the series and earn the rest that comes with it.