The highest-seeded Minnesota Lynx survived a valiant effort by the No. 8 Golden State Valkyries with a 75-74 comeback victory on Wednesday evening, successful their first-round sequence, 2-0, and advancing to the semifinals the place they may face the winner of the New York/Phoenix sequence.
However whereas the Lynx’s championship hopes reside on, Wednesday evening was all in regards to the Valkyries, who capped off one of the best season for an growth group in WNBA historical past with a gritty efficiency that will likely be remembered within the Bay Space and past for a very long time.
After the Lynx beat the Valkyries 4 occasions throughout the common season and took Sport 1 with a decisive 101-72 win, they have been closely favored to win Sport 2 convincingly. Nevertheless, Golden State was probably the most dominant group for many of Wednesday’s recreation.
The Valkyries entered halftime with a 41-28 lead. The 28 factors have been the fewest for the Lynx in a primary half by their 2025 marketing campaign. That was no straightforward achievement as Minnesota had the strongest offense within the league throughout the common season, however the Valkyries took management of the rhythm early within the recreation by dashing up their opponents to make scoring harder. Although each groups had a comparable variety of turnovers, Golden State was capitalizing extra on Minnesota’s errors. The Valkyries have been additionally significantly spectacular from past the arc, going 7 of 11 within the first two quarters.
“We’re not simply enjoying with our hearts tonight, we’re enjoying with our minds. We need to be the smarter group tonight,” Valkyries head coach Natalie Nakase informed ESPN earlier than the second half tipped off.
The momentum began shifting after the break as Minnesota opened the third quarter with an 11-0 run. Nevertheless, Golden State nonetheless received that interval, 22-21.
The Lynx’s first lead for the reason that first quarter was 71-70 after a two-pointer by Kayla McBride with 2:48 left within the recreation. On the following possession, Natisha Hiedeman had a giant steal to disrupt Golden State.
The Valkyries weren’t in a position to host at Chase Middle on account of a battle of schedule, however the group bought out the SAP Middle in San Jose for Sport 2. The gang was loud all 40 minutes, significantly within the final minute when both group had an opportunity to win it.
Courtney Williams made a clutch leap shot for Minnesota with below 30 seconds remaining, however the Valkyries responded with a 3-pointer by way of Cecilia Zandalasini. Time was working out because the Lynx held a 75-74 benefit, however the Valkyries received one other alternative. They opted to not foul and Minnesota was referred to as for a shot clock violation with 4 seconds left.
The Valkyries’ gameplan was troublesome to execute as McBride deliberately dedicated a foul with 2.8 seconds on the clock. Though Golden State had possession once more, the Lynx protection held on.
“We all know what we made from,” Lynx star Napheesa Collier stated throughout her postgame interview. “We have been right here earlier than, now we have the expertise, we all know how powerful and gritty it’s to win in conditions like this. To come back again from that, in that means, on this setting, I am actually happy with us.”
It took a strong efficiency on either side of the court docket for Minnesota to outscore the Valkyries, 26-11, within the fourth quarter. Collier was happy with her group whereas additionally giving credit score to Golden State for such a aggressive battle.
“It is unbelievable what they’ve completed right here. That group is so, so laborious working and it was a tricky recreation,” Collier stated.
The Valkyries did not advance, however they already made historical past as the primary growth group in WNBA historical past to make the playoffs. Their unbelievable season didn’t go unrecognized as Nakase was named Coach of the 12 months and Veronica Burton acquired Most Improved Participant honors this week.
“So proud. That is the very first thing I stated,” Nakase informed reporters after the sport. “No. 1, I stated, ‘get your f—–g heads up’. I stated, ‘get your heads up.’ They have been down. I stated, ‘I would like everybody’s eye contact. I need to really feel each particular person proper now. And I would like your feelings, I would like your coronary heart, I would like every little thing.’ Everybody appeared up and I simply informed them how proud I used to be. To have that place rocking tonight, to have that Ballhalla mentality, to have the ability to go toe-and-toe to the No. 1 group, I used to be so proud.”
