WNBA playoffs: Valkyries finish sweep of Aces, reach Finals in second year of existence

The Golden State Valkyries finished off a statement sweep of the Las Vegas Aces on Friday.With an 87-77 overtime win on Friday, the Valkyries eliminated the defending champions in the WNBA semifinals. They are headed to the WNBA Finals in their second year of existence.IN JUST THEIR 2ND SEASON, THE GOLDEN STATE VALKYRIES ARE HEADED TO THE WNBA FINALS! pic.twitter.com/XZrBuQpSSN— WNBA on NBC and Peacock (@WNBAonNBC) October 10, 2026 It will be Angel Reese and the Atlanta Dream waiting for them. The Dream finished off their own sweep of a championship-winning core earlier in the evening, taking out the New York Liberty in another close game.Whoever wins, it will be the first championship in franchise history. It will also be the first time since 2021 that the Finals haven't featured either the Aces or Liberty.Game 1 is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Oct. 17 (NBC/Peacock).It's the continuation of a dream season for the Valkyries, who followed up a highly successful inaugural season in 2025 with the second-best regular-season record in the WNBA at 32-12. From Day 1 under head coach Natalie Nakase, a former Aces assistant, they have leaned into an identity built around relentless defense and a truckload of 3-pointers.That wound up being more than the Aces could handle. The first three halves of play were absolute misery for the defending champions, though they did make Game 2 competitive with a great fourth quarter. They appeared to carry something over from that in Game 3, entering halftime with a nine-point lead that could have been 12 had Chelsea Gray gotten off a buzzer-beating 3-pointer a second earlier.Unfortunately, that momentum drained away not long into the third quarter. The Valkyries ripped off a 17-0 run to grab the lead and then some, and Las Vegas had to play catch-up just to force overtime. Both teams had a chance to score at the end of regulation, but shots from Gabby Williams and Chelsea Gray clanked away.Overtime wound up being one-sided, with Gabby Williams landing the dagger with less than a minute left.GABBY WILLIAMS HITS THE HUGE JUMPER IN OVERTIME AND THE VALKYRIES CAN TASTE A FINALS APPEARANCE! pic.twitter.com/coxQSja0Fc— WNBA on NBC and Peacock (@WNBAonNBC) October 10, 2026 Kayla Thornton led the Valkyries with 18 points on 5-of-12 shooting, plus 9 rebounds, while Williams had 16 points on 16 shots. The biggest factor might have been Kiah Stokes, the defensive-minded center who posted 11 points on 5-of-5 shooting, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals in a team-high 37 minutes.Stokes' real job was clear all series: Don't let A'ja Wilson do GOAT stuff. She was mostly successful, holding the five-time WNBA MVP to 23 points per game on 41.7% shooting plus 7 rebounds and 1 assist per game during the series. Those are solid numbers, but not for Wilson. She had 32 points on 64.6% shooting and 11.7 rebounds per game in her previous series against the Indiana Fever.With Jackie Young dealing with foul trouble on a mediocre shooting night and Chelsea Gray posting 17 points (only two of them after halftime), the Aces didn't have many wells to pull from, especially given their other injuries.It's the first time Las Vegas has been swept since Becky Hammon took over, and the kind of series that begs the question of how many years are left in this window with Wilson at 30 years old.Follow along with Yahoo Sports for all the news, highlights and more from Game 3 of the Valkyries-Aces semifinals series: