The Golden State Valkyries closed out the pre-FIBA World Cup portion of their schedule with an 86-69 victory over the Portland Fire on Sunday at Moda Center, improving to 29-11 and entering the break second in the WNBA standings. Golden State led 28-14 after the first quarter, took a 47-25 advantage into halftime and held off a Portland push in the second half.
Tiffany Hayes led the Valkyries with 18 points, scoring 14 in the first quarter alone. Her 14 first-quarter points matched Portland’s entire team total for the opening period. Hayes finished 7-of-12 from the field, 2-of-5 from three-point range and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line while adding six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Kayla Thornton added 17 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 3-of-5 from three-point range and a perfect 4-of-4 from the free-throw line. She also recorded two rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block. Kaitlyn Chen contributed 15 points in 27 minutes, shooting 5-of-8 from the floor.
Kaila Charles finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and five assists, leading all players in rebounds. Veronica Burton also scored 11 points while recording six rebounds and six assists. Burton surpassed 500 career rebounds during the game.
Miela Sowah recorded the first points of her WNBA career when she scored on a layup in the fourth quarter. She finished the game with two points in 3:39 of action.
Golden State shot 29-of-61 from the field, 9-of-29 from three-point range and a season-high 19-of-21 from the free-throw line, converting 90.5 percent of its attempts from the stripe. The Valkyries also held a 31-29 advantage in total rebounds and finished with 20 assists.
The Valkyries established control early, shooting 55.6 percent from the field and 40 percent from three in the opening quarter while holding Portland to 31.2 percent shooting. Golden State led 28-14 after the first 10 minutes and extended its advantage to 47-25 by halftime.
Portland outscored Golden State 26-23 in the third quarter and 18-16 in the fourth, but the Valkyries’ early advantage proved too much to overcome. The Fire finished the game shooting 24-of-62 from the field, 10-of-39 from three and 11-of-13 from the free-throw line.
With the victory, Golden State became the first team since New York in 2024 to hold its opponent to 70 or fewer points in four consecutive road games. The Valkyries have also won six of their last seven road games.
The team entered the game without Janelle Salaün, Gabby Williams and Cecilia Zandalasini, who are away from the team due to international commitments.
Head coach Natalie Nakase praised the team’s ability to maintain its roles and execute despite the absences.
“I love the fact that everyone still played their role, but they played it with maximum effort. I was really proud of that. I was very proud of the fact that we executed the game plan on both sides, and I thought we had our best start in the first half. I don’t think the energy dropped at all…Especially being at the very end of the stretch of this long road trip, you couldn’t even tell it was at the end. So credit to them for taking care of their bodies on the off time…I couldn’t be happier.”
Nakase also discussed preparing the team’s stay-ready group and emphasized that players did not need to take on responsibilities outside of their normal roles.
“Letting them know what the game plan was, but also to say, ‘hey, continue to play your role. You don’t need to be somebody else. We don’t need you to take on the scoring load.’ The ball will eventually find the hot hand – number one because we’re super selfless, and more importantly, we continue to make the right reads. I was very proud of that.”
Nakase will also represent USA Basketball at the FIBA World Cup, where she will serve as an assistant alongside Kara Lawson, Stephanie White and Nate Tibbetts.
“I’m excited about [coaching with team] USA. This is a dream come true for me. It’s a job that I never thought I was going to get, and so just being able to be Kara’s [Lawson] assistant, and then coach alongside Stephanie [White] and Nate [Tibbetts], I’m just excited to learn, represent the USA, and then get to see Gabby [Williams], Ceci [Zandalasini], Ja [Janelle Salaün], Miela [Sowah] over there. Just super excited to be around some of the best players in the world.”
Thornton pointed to Golden State’s depth as an important part of the team’s success.
“Next person up, we just take our opportunity. We all believe in each other, and I feel like whoever starts and whoever comes in, you can’t tell the difference, and that’s what’s important. We just do it for each other.”
Thornton also emphasized the importance of maintaining momentum during the FIBA World Cup break, with the team’s final four games of the regular season coming afterward.
“[We’re] making sure that we go on this break and don’t do nothing but make sure you do what you need. We [have to] come back, because these next four games after [the] World Cup are very vital heading into playoffs.”
The Valkyries will return from the FIBA World Cup break on Friday, September 18, when they host Portland at 7:00 p.m. PT. The game will be exclusively available on ION, 95.7 THE GAME, the Audacy App and ESPN 1320.
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