Allisha Gray scored 23 points and Rhyne Howard had 21 as Atlanta levelled the series. The first Game 7 in WNBA Finals history is set for Saturday in San Francisco.
The Golden State Valkyries beat the Atlanta Dream 64–55 in San Francisco on October 26, taking a 3–2 lead in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) Finals and moving one win from their first championship. Center Kiah Stokes scored 13 points and blocked three shots, but The Guardian and ESPN give different totals for her rebounds.
Golden State won two straight games through Game 5 after trailing the best-of-seven series 2–1. The Valkyries are playing only their second WNBA season, having joined the league as a new team in 2025.
Atlanta Dream beat the Golden State Valkyries 80–69 to level the WNBA Finals and force a deciding game. Allisha Gray scored 23 points and Rhyne Howard had 21 for Atlanta, which made six of eight three-point attempts in the first quarter. Golden State’s Gabby Williams led all scorers with 26 points. BBC Sport says Atlanta’s Angel Reese led the game in rebounding with 14 rebounds, while AP credits her with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
The disagreement concerns rebounds—the balls a player recovers after missed shots. Both accounts give Stokes the same points and blocks totals, but their rebound figures differ by one.
| Account |
|---|
Gabby Williams’s 17 points helped Golden State end Atlanta’s two-game winning run, sending the tied series back to California for Game 5 on 26 October.
4 min
| Rebounds |
|---|
| The Guardian | 8 |
| ESPN | 7 |
Stokes made five of her six shots from the field. Atlanta made just 19 of 65 attempts, shooting 29.2%. The Dream made only one of seven shots that Stokes challenged.
Stokes has blocked at least three shots in six consecutive playoff games, matching Lisa Leslie’s 2003 record for the longest such streak within a single WNBA postseason.
Atlanta coach Karl Smesko credited Golden State’s defense but said officials missed excessive contact against Angel Reese, who finished with seven points. Golden State coach Natalie Nakase said the physical play was expected at this stage of the Finals and described both teams as focused on defense and comfortable with contact.
The first Game 7 in WNBA Finals history is scheduled for Saturday, October 31, at 8 p.m. Eastern time at Golden State’s Chase Center in San Francisco.
