The WNBA’s irresistible force and one of its immovable objects are plotted for a collision course when the league semifinals between the Las Vegas Aces and Golden State Valkyries tip off in Game 1 in San Francisco on Sunday afternoon.
The third-seeded Aces and second-seeded Valkyries both had to go the distance for best-of-3, first-round wins, each winning at home in the deciding Game 3 to come away with a narrow triumph that has vaulted it into the league’s final four.
Golden State, by virtue of having finished one game ahead of Las Vegas in the regular-season standings, will have the home-court advantage in this best-of-5.
The Aces, who have won three of the last four WNBA titles, swept the Valkyries 3-0 in the season series, beginning with a 91-81 win at Golden State in May. They then followed up with 84-79 and 92-73 home wins in June.
The last of those triumphs was 104 days ago.
Something that hasn’t changed over those 3 1/2 months has been the dominance of Aces standout A’ja Wilson, who averaged 25.0 points and 12.7 rebounds against Golden State this season. The four-time Most Valuable Player had even better numbers — 32.0 points and 11.7 rebounds — when Vegas eliminated the sixth-seeded Indiana Fever in the first round.
Wilson sounded serious about winning another championship when she spoke in an on-court interview following Thursday’s clinching 94-83 win over the Fever.
“Regular season’s cute. I know, that’s so cute, oh my God, everyone can come see us,” she stated. “But this is the moment that we live for.”
The Valkyries have held their own in the paint this season thanks to defensive standout Kiah Stokes. The three-time champion with the Aces averaged 1.7 blocks and 5.8 rebounds in her first season with Golden State this year.
“Kiah Stokes is our anchor. She is always there,” Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase gushed to reporters during the series against seventh-seeded Dallas. “She loves to just not let anyone score.”
Wilson wasn’t the lone player in the season series against the Valkyries to score 20 or more points in all three games. That distinction belonged to her teammate, Jackie Young, who poured in 23, 27 and 21 points in the wins.
Gabby Williams, the hero of Golden State’s 77-73 Game 3 win over Dallas on Friday, was the Valkyries’ top scorer against the Aces this season, averaging 19.0 points per game.
–Field Level Media
