Gabby Williams thrived in high-pressure situations, fueling the Golden State Valkyries' 16-point comeback to beat the Dallas Wings 77-73 in Game 3 and secure a spot in the WNBA semifinals. Williams scored 17 of her 19 points in the second half, including 11 in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Wings 8-1 in the final two minutes. The Valkyries, who earned their first playoff series win in the franchise's second season, will face the reigning champion Las Vegas Aces, with the best-of-five series starting at Ballhalla on Sunday afternoon.
Friday night's comeback was the fifth-largest in a winner-take-all game in WNBA playoff history and the largest since the Aces' 16-point comeback against the Sun in Game 5 of the 2020 semifinals. Williams' clutch performance followed her career-high 36-point night in Game 2, and she credited her desire to be trusted in big moments as her reason for joining Golden State in the off-season. Veronica Burton hit a 26-foot rainbow 3-pointer over Paige Bueckers to end the Valkyries' scoring drought, sparking a 14-4 run that cut the deficit to five entering the fourth quarter.
Golden State outscored Dallas 23-14 in the final period. Burton finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds for the first double-double in Valkyries postseason history, and Tiffany Hayes scored 18 points off the bench.
Source: ESPN General · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing