Pre-Review_WNBA: Dallas Wings at Golden State Valkyries

1st Quarter:

Golden State wins the tip and Veronica Burton gets the Valkyries organized early, working a pick-and-roll with Kayla Thornton for an easy bucket inside.

Dallas answers immediately. Paige Bueckers splits a double-team off a high screen and floats one in from 17 feet.

The Valkyries lean on their size advantage, feeding the post and crashing the offensive glass. Kiah Stokes cleans up a putback to make it 9-4 Golden State.

Arike Ogunbowale decides she's seen enough standing around and rattles home back-to-back threes, and just like that Dallas has the lead.

With 3:41 left, Jessica Shepard bullies her way to a rebound and kicks it out to Azzi Fudd, who buries a corner three in rhythm.

End of 1st: Dallas 19 - Golden State 15

2nd Quarter:

Golden State's bench unit comes in and immediately tightens the defense, forcing three straight Dallas turnovers on ill-advised drives into traffic.

Natalie Nakase's group goes on an 11-2 run, capped by a Burton step-back three that has Chase Center rocking.

Bueckers settles Dallas down, walking the ball up and orchestrating a slower, more deliberate pace. She finds Odyssey Sims for a floater to stop the bleeding.

Thornton continues to dominate the glass, grabbing her eighth rebound of the half before the horn.

Halftime: Golden State 41 - Dallas 38

3rd Quarter:

Dallas comes out of the break with intent. Ogunbowale, feeling it now, pulls up from well behind the arc for her fourth three of the night.

Golden State counters with interior pressure, forcing Shepard into foul trouble as she picks up her fourth with 6:02 left in the quarter.

Bueckers takes over, weaving through a scramble defense for a and-one layup, then finding Fudd in transition for another triple two possessions later.

The Valkyries' defense clamps down late, holding Dallas scoreless over a critical three-minute stretch, and Burton banks in an off-balance runner at the buzzer.

End of 3rd: Golden State 61 - Dallas 59

4th Quarter:

Both teams trade buckets early, neither able to build separation. Stokes swats a Bueckers drive at the rim, sending the ball out to midcourt and igniting the home crowd.

Dallas doesn't flinch. Ogunbowale answers with a stepback jumper over a contest, and Bueckers follows with a steal and coast-to-coast layup to tie it at 70 with 4:18 left.

Thornton scores on consecutive post-ups to push Golden State back in front, but Sims answers from deep to keep it a one-possession game.

With 42 seconds left, Bueckers works a screen from Shepard and rises for a contested midrange jumper — good, Dallas up one.

Golden State draws up a final set for Burton, who gets a clean look off a stagger screen from the wing. The shot rims out, and Thornton's putback attempt is off the mark as time expires.

Final: Dallas 78 - Golden State 77

Summary:

Paige Bueckers shook off a slow start to shoulder the Wings down the stretch, and Arike Ogunbowale's outside shooting kept Dallas afloat all night. Golden State's size and Veronica Burton's playmaking nearly carried the day, but a missed final look proved costly in a game that lived up to the stakes on both sides of this playoff-race matchup.

Notable stats:

Dallas Wings — Paige Bueckers: 26 pts, 7 ast, 5 reb, 2 stl | Arike Ogunbowale: 22 pts, 6-11 3PT

Golden State Valkyries — Veronica Burton: 24 pts, 9 ast | Kayla Thornton: 18 pts, 13 reb | Kiah Stokes: 6 blk