SAN FRANCISCO — A cold shooting night didn’t stop the Golden State Valkyries from making history on Wednesday night.
In front of another sellout crowd of 18,064, the Valkyries defeated the Washington Mystics 76-74, marking their first win in franchise history.
Golden State shot 31.9% from the field and 18.9% from the three-point line, but kept the high-scoring Mystics in check.
Veronica Burton did everything on the floor for Golden State, scoring 20 points, snatching nine rebounds and dishing out five assists. Kayla Thornton added 18 points.
In her season debut, French forward Janelle Salaün totaled 10 points and grabbed four rebounds.
Washington guard Brittney Sykes led all scorers with 30 points.
In a back-and-forth final quarter, the Valkyries were the ones who hit all the big shots.
A 3 from Burton with under two minutes left gave Golden State a one-point advantage. On the next possession, Thornton hit an and-1 3 from the left corner to push the lead to five.
Burton officially closed the door on the Mystics on a reload 3 from the left wing that made the score 73-66.
Despite making just 2 of their 20 3-point attempts in the first half, Golden State hung on to a 31-30 lead at halftime after Veronica Burton hit a fading buzzer-beating 3 to give the Valkyries a slim lead.
Golden State made 11 of 14 shots at the free throw line and forced 10 turnovers. Janelle Salaün and Kayla Thornton each had seven points to lead Golden State at halftime.
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Despite missing 11 3s in the first quarter, the Valkyries only fell behind three points after the first quarter. Golden State started off in a matchup 2-3 zone that forced four first-quarter turnovers and held the Mystics to 37.5 % shooting from the field.
The Valkyries will hit the road for the next three games, starting with an away game against the Los Angeles Sparks on Friday.
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