In the compressed drama of a winner-take-all playoff game, the Golden State Valkyries completed one of the more improbable reversals in recent WNBA memory, erasing a 16-point deficit to defeat the Dallas Wings 77-73 and advance to the semifinals. Gabby Williams, whose go-ahead jumper with 13 seconds remaining sealed the victory, embodied the larger story of a franchise that has spent its brief existence defying the expectations placed on newcomers. The Valkyries, who did not exist two years ago, have already rewritten what expansion can mean — in attendance, in valuation, and now in postseason
Valkyries stun Wings in dramatic comeback to reach WNBA semifinals
They clawed back from 16 down to stun Dallas in a winner-take-all game
Mark
So the Valkyries came back from 16 down in a playoff game. That's the headline. But what does it actually mean for a franchise that's only been around since 2025?
Mimi
It means they're not a novelty anymore. They made the playoffs in their first year, which no expansion team had ever done. Now they're winning playoff series. They're not just drawing crowds—they're 18,000 people a night. Forbes valued them highest in the league. This is real.
Luke
But let's be careful here. One playoff series win, one game, doesn't make a dynasty. They're about to face Las Vegas, the defending champion. That's a different level of test.
Mark
Right. So what was the actual game like? How does a team come back 16 points?
Mimi
Gabby Williams scored 17 of her 19 points in the second half. Veronica Burton was everywhere—16 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists. Kaila Charles hit a three to tie it. It was a team effort, but Williams was the closer. She hit the go-ahead shot with 13 seconds left.
Luke
And Dallas had them beat. Arike Ogunbowale had 30 points. She'd just put up 45 in their win two days before. Paige Bueckers was there too. This wasn't some weak opponent.
Mark
So what's the story beneath the comeback? Why does this matter beyond the score?
Mimi
It's about a coach who believed in her team enough to challenge a call with 13 seconds left, and a team that believed in each other enough to execute when it mattered. Nakase fell to her knees. That's not theater—that's the weight of what they'd just done.
Luke
The one thing we don't know is whether this team can sustain it. One game against Las Vegas will tell us a lot more than one game against Dallas.
Mark
When do they play?
Mimi
Sunday. At home. Game 1 of the semifinals.
Luke
And if they win that, then we're really talking about something historic.
Il Polso
- Dallas controlled the game for three quarters, with Arike Ogunbowale pouring in 30 points and the Wings holding a 16-point lead that looked insurmountable.
- Golden State refused to fold — Gabby Williams ignited the comeback with back-to-back threes, Veronica Burton's layup pulled the Valkyries within two, and the deficit dissolved possession by possession.
- A disputed out-of-bounds call with 13 seconds left threatened to end it all, but coach Natalie Nakase challenged the ruling, the review reversed it, and Williams got the ball back.
- Williams rose and hit the go-ahead 17-footer, Golden State held on for a 77-73 win, and Nakase had to be helped off the court as her team celebrated their first-ever playoff series victory.
- The Valkyries now face defending champion Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals — the next chapter for a franchise still writing its origin story.
In the compressed drama of a winner-take-all playoff game, the Golden State Valkyries completed one of the more improbable reversals in recent WNBA memory, erasing a 16-point deficit to defeat the Dallas Wings 77-73 and advance to the semifinals. Gabby Williams, whose go-ahead jumper with 13 seconds remaining sealed the victory, embodied the larger story of a franchise that has spent its brief existence defying the expectations placed on newcomers. The Valkyries, who did not exist two years ago, have already rewritten what expansion can mean — in attendance, in valuation, and now in postseason achievement.
Gabby Williams released a 17-footer from the wing with 13 seconds on the clock, and when it fell through the net, it gave Golden State a lead they would not relinquish. The Valkyries defeated the Dallas Wings 77-73 in Game 3, completing a comeback from 16 points down and claiming their first playoff series victory.
The win added another improbable chapter to a franchise that has been accumulating them since its inception. In their inaugural 2025 season, the Valkyries became the first expansion team in WNBA history to reach the playoffs. They sold out every home game, averaged over 18,000 fans per contest, and were valued by Forbes as the league's top franchise. Friday night, they earned something no amount of valuation could purchase: a postseason series win.
Williams finished with 19 points, nearly all of them coming in the second half when they mattered most. Veronica Burton added 16 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, her layup pulling Golden State within two at a critical juncture. Tiffany Hayes contributed 18 off the bench, and Kaila Charles tied the game with a three-pointer late. Dallas had Arike Ogunbowale, who finished with 30 points and seemed to be willing the Wings to victory as late as the final three minutes.
The turning point arrived in the chaos of the closing seconds. Williams missed a shot, grabbed her own rebound, but officials ruled the ball had gone out off Golden State. Coach Natalie Nakase challenged. The review sided with her. Williams got the ball back, steadied herself, and delivered the shot that decided everything.
Nakase, who had told her players before the game to play the best four quarters of their lives, fell to her knees in the final moments and had to be helped from the court as her team celebrated. The Valkyries now advance to face defending champion Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals — a matchup that would have seemed like fiction for a franchise that did not exist two years ago.
Gabby Williams rose up from the wing with 13 seconds left on the clock, the game hanging on a single possession. She released a 17-footer that found nothing but net, giving Golden State a one-point lead over Dallas. What made the moment extraordinary was not just the shot itself, but the path that had brought the Valkyries to it: they had clawed back from 16 points down to stun the Wings 77-73 in a Game 3 that decided everything.
The Golden State Valkyries' second year in the WNBA has been a sequence of improbable achievements stacked one atop another. In their inaugural 2025 season, they became the first expansion franchise in league history to make the playoffs. They sold out every regular season home game and averaged more than 18,000 fans per contest, setting a league attendance record. Forbes valued them as the highest-valued franchise in the league, even as the WNBA itself marked its 30th season. On Friday night, they added another first to the ledger: their first playoff series victory.
Williams finished with 19 points, but the arc of her performance told the story of the comeback itself. She scored all but two of those points after halftime, hitting two crucial three-pointers late in the third quarter as Golden State began to claw back. Veronica Burton contributed 16 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, her layup with 8:19 remaining pulling the Valkyries within two at 61-59. Tiffany Hayes added 18 points off the bench. Kaila Charles tied the game with a three-pointer with 6:51 left. Kiah Stokes pulled down 13 rebounds. It was a collective effort, each player delivering when the margin narrowed.
Dallas had controlled most of the game. Arike Ogunbowale, who had dropped 45 points in the Wings' overtime victory two nights earlier at home, was relentless again, finishing with 30 points. With 3:13 remaining, she knocked down an off-balance jumper to push Dallas ahead by five. Paige Bueckers contributed 17 points and six assists for the Wings, though she shot only 3 for 14 from the field, making all 10 of her free throws.
The decisive moment came with 13.1 seconds left. Williams went up for a shot, missed, and leaped back to secure her own rebound. The officials initially ruled the ball had gone out of bounds off Golden State, giving Dallas possession. Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase challenged the call. The review went her way. Williams got the ball back, and with the game still within reach, she delivered the go-ahead shot.
Nakase had fallen to her knees in the intensity of those final moments and needed help from a staff member to stand and be escorted from the court as her team celebrated at midcenter. Before the game, she had challenged her players to deliver. "We made a promise to ourselves we are going to play the best four quarters of our lives," she had said. In the end, they needed only the last one.
The Valkyries will now face the defending WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals, beginning Sunday at home. The Atlanta Dream will host the New York Liberty in the other semifinal matchup. For a franchise that did not exist two years ago, the run continues.
Citazioni salienti
We made a promise to ourselves we are going to play the best four quarters of our lives.— Coach Natalie Nakase, before Game 3
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