{"id":2739,"date":"2026-06-21T23:36:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-21T23:36:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2739"},"modified":"2026-06-21T23:36:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-21T23:36:10","slug":"valkyries-instant-analysis-aja-wilson-led-aces-demolish-golden-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2739","title":{"rendered":"Valkyries instant analysis: A\u2019ja Wilson-led Aces demolish Golden State"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p><span>The Aces didn\u2019t just beat the Valkyries on Sunday afternoon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>They dismantled them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Las Vegas raced out to a 20-point halftime lead and never let the Valkyries breathe as Golden State fell 92-73. It was the worst loss of the season for the Valkyries, who trailed by as much as 28 in the second half.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2737\">Two bystanders thwart kidnapping, Hayward police say<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>Golden State dropped its second straight game and have now lost its sixth straight to the Aces with Sunday\u2019s defeat.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey went on a run and weren\u2019t able to stop that,\u201d Valkyries forward Cecilia Zandalasini said. \u201cWe\u2019re gonna learn from this game because I think we can be way better than that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><span>The Valkyries were ice cold from the 3-point line, hitting a season-low 5-of-30 shots from deep. They came into the game leading the league in 3-pointers made (184) and 3-point percentage (36.4%).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>They couldn\u2019t stop the Aces\u2019 star-studded offense as the home team shot 62% from the field and 46% from the 3-point line.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Zandalasini had another solid game, scoring 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Kaitlyn Chen added 11 points and Gabby Williams and Laeticia Amihere each had 10.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>No other player had more than seven points.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>NorCal native Chelsea Gray had 15 points and nine assists. A\u2019ja Wilson had 19 points and nine rebounds while Jackie Young led the Aces in scoring with 21 points.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase said the team playing their fourth game in seven days changed the substitution patterns for Sunday\u2019s game.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey maximized their efforts in the first two, and actually even in the third one. So for me it\u2019s about explaining to them that the shortest stints are going to happen, but then how can you guys be very impactful in those in those shorter stints,\u201d Nakase said.<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>The Valkyries stayed with the defending champions up until the midway point of the second quarter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>After a bucket from Kiah Stokes cut the Aces\u2019 lead to one at the 6:35 mark, Las Vegas went on to go on a 21-2 run to close the half.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>A barrage of buckets from Gray and Young cut up the Valkyries\u2019 defense as Golden State went into the halftime break down 50-30. The Valkyries made just one of their 15 3-point attempts in the first half and were outscored 27-13 in the second quarter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Williams opened the third quarter with an impressive steal-and-score \u2013 a play that looked like it set the tone for the Valkyries to open the second half.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But the final 20 minutes were much more of the same.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The Aces won the third quarter by eight points and cruised to an easy win as Nakase emptied her bench early in the fourth quarter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2736\">In Taylor Swift\u2019s beach town, every clue becomes a wedding rumor<\/a><\/p>\n<p>With back-to-back losses to Minnesota and Las Vegas, the Valkyries are 0-4 against the top two teams in the league. They will enter a three-game homestand, starting with a game against the Atlanta Dream on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p><b>Burton struggles<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>For the second straight game, starting point guard Veronica Burton struggled to get going.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The reigning most improved player of the year scored two points in 16 minutes on 1-of-5 shooting from the field. She missed all three of her 3-point shot attempts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Against the Lynx on Friday, Burton had just eight points on 3-of-8 shooting.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe had heavy, heavy minutes these first three games,\u201d Nakase said. :Health is the priority to walk away from these four games in seven days, and we did that because we\u2019re facing a team that had three days rest compared to our four four and seven.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b>Jocyt\u0117 still progressing<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span>The Valkyries are clearly taking their time with rookie Just\u0117 Jocyt\u0117.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase said the team is transitioning Jocyt\u0117 to becoming a point guard \u2013 a role she hasn\u2019t played before.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Jocyt\u0117 got in garbage time minutes in the fourth quarter when the game became out of reach for the Valkyries.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Nakase said the 20-year-old Lithuanian has been adjusting to the role change well and complimented her for learning on the fly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI need her to be prepared for the physicality and the pace of the W,\u201d Nakase said before Sunday\u2019s game. \u201cIt\u2019s physical and also I want her to be in the best shape so I don\u2019t set her up for an injury as well. \u2026 So it\u2019s understanding that not everyone has the same timeline, and I love that Just\u0117 has been very patient. But she\u2019s learning so much in terms of the point guard position.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hayes gives good minutes<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Veteran guard Tiffany Hayes opened the game strong off the bench.<\/p>\n<p>She scored all seven of her points in the first three minutes she was on the floor and provided a spark for the Valkyries in the firs quarter.<\/p>\n<p>Hayes, 36, has been a rotation regular in the last few weeks. Nakase commended her along with Zandalasini and Williams for maximizing their minutes in the last few weeks.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought they maximize those, those stints from what I saw because we\u2019re putting a lot on them in terms of making the decisions in those situations and being in the spots we were getting,\u201d Nakase said.<\/p>\n<p>Hayes was helped to the locker room late in the third quarter after taking an elbow from Jewell Lloyd while fighting for a rebound. She did not return.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2734\">Kurtenbach: A pathetic ninth-inning conflict perfectly summarized the SF Giants\u2019 miserable season<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Valkyries suffer worst loss of the season as they go cold from 3-point line<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2738,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Valkyries instant analysis: A\u2019ja Wilson-led Aces demolish Golden State - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=2739\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Valkyries instant analysis: A\u2019ja Wilson-led Aces demolish Golden State - 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