28-6 second quarter sends Valkyries past Storm 70-57 at Chase Center

The quarter that turned a close game into a steep climb

Golden State did not blow the game open immediately. The Valkyries scored first on Veronica Burton’s driving layup at 9:29 of the first quarter and never surrendered the lead, but Seattle stayed attached for most of the opening 10 minutes. Flau’jae Johnson kept the Storm in range with an early 27-foot pull-up three and then a flurry of midrange and paint scoring late in the quarter. When Mackenzie Holmes scored with 34.7 seconds left in the first, Golden State’s lead was only 21-19.

Then came the stretch that decided the night. Juste Jocyte opened the second quarter with a three at 9:38, Tiffany Hayes added a free throw at 8:44, and Seattle briefly answered when Dominique Malonga scored at 7:57 to make it 25-21. That was as close as the Storm would get. Hayes drilled a 24-footer at 7:34, Laeticia Amihere finished at 7:10, Jocyte hit again from deep at 6:40, and Kaitlyn Chen followed with a 23-foot jumper at 5:28. In a little more than two and a half minutes, a four-point game had become a 36-21 hole.

What made that run damaging was not just the shotmaking, but the way Golden State stacked possessions. The Valkyries finished the night with 12 offensive rebounds and 22 assists, and that second quarter felt like the numbers coming to life. Seattle managed only six points in the period, while Golden State kept finding a fresh scorer. Charles added a layup at 3:26 and a three at 2:47, then closed her half with a 6-foot floater at 53.2 seconds. Kiah Stokes banked in a 5-footer with 3.0 seconds left for a 49-25 halftime margin that already looked more structural than accidental.

Seattle’s push arrived, but Golden State kept the answers

If halftime left any doubt, the first two minutes of the third quarter mostly removed it. Burton opened the half with a three at 9:39, Charles hit from 26 feet at 8:25, and Hayes scored at the rim at 7:58 to make it 57-25. That became Golden State’s largest lead of the night at 32, and it fit the broader statistical picture: the Valkyries were moving the ball better, protecting it better and turning their defensive activity into extra chances.

To Seattle’s credit, the game did not collapse there. Taylor Thierry made a three at 6:45, Johnson answered with a 28-footer at 4:15, Natisha Hiedeman hit from 27 feet at 3:44, and Malonga completed a three-point play at 3:15. When Johnson buried another 27-footer at 2:22, the Storm had real signs of life. But every time the deficit threatened to become uncomfortable for Golden State, the Valkyries steadied themselves. Burton made two free throws at 3:59, Chen answered with a three at 2:04, and Charles scored inside at 1:26. Seattle won the third quarter 21-15, yet the score was still 64-46 entering the fourth.

The final quarter never became frantic, but it did reveal how much fight Seattle still had. Awa Fam opened with back-to-back threes at 8:56 and 8:07, trimming the margin to 64-52. Burton stopped that stretch with a layup at 7:06, Holmes answered for Seattle at 6:49, and the scoring slowed to a crawl. That is where Chen’s patience mattered. Her floaters at 3:53 and 33.8 seconds accounted for the last Golden State points and effectively closed the book. The individual lines tell the same story as the score: Charles posted 16 points and 12 rebounds, Hayes gave Golden State 10 points and six assists, Jocyte scored 11 in just 13 minutes while going 3-for-3 from deep, and Stokes added nine rebounds with four blocks. Seattle got 17 points from Johnson, but no other Storm player reached double figures.

Our take: a useful win, and a clear warning for both teams

Golden State will not confuse this with a perfect offensive performance. The Valkyries shot 37.7 percent from the field and scored only six points in the fourth quarter. But this was still a convincing win because the connective parts were stronger than Seattle’s: 22 assists to 16, 42 rebounds to 36, and a defensive line of 12 steals and seven blocks. That is a sturdy formula even on an uneven shooting night. The caution is obvious too. After building a 32-point lead, Golden State made only three field goals in the fourth. In games that stay tighter for longer, that kind of stall can become the story instead of a footnote.

Seattle’s lesson is harsher because it arrived in one quarter and never really let go. The Storm shot 33.3 percent, committed 18 total turnovers, and scored just six points in the second period. That combination forced them to spend the rest of the night climbing out of a hole they created. There was something encouraging in the response after 57-25 became 64-52, especially with Fam’s pair of fourth-quarter threes and Johnson’s shotmaking carrying long stretches. But the bigger need is earlier stability. When only one Storm scorer gets into double figures and the opponent never trails, the comeback effort becomes more admirable than practical.

Scoring moments

1. 1st Quarter · 9:29

   Veronica Burton makes driving layup (Tiffany Hayes assists)

2. 1st Quarter · 9:05

   Kaila Charles makes 2-foot layup (Kiah Stokes assists)

3. 1st Quarter · 8:16

   Flau'jae Johnson makes 27-foot running pullup jump shot

4. 1st Quarter · 6:32

   Tiffany Hayes makes 18-foot jumper (Veronica Burton assists)

5. 1st Quarter · 5:31

   Kaila Charles makes running layup (Kiah Stokes assists)

6. 1st Quarter · 4:28

   Taylor Thierry makes 6-foot layup (Stefanie Dolson assists)

7. 1st Quarter · 4:09

   Tiffany Hayes makes driving layup

8. 1st Quarter · 3:57

   Stefanie Dolson makes 25-foot three point jumper (Taylor Thierry assists)

9. 1st Quarter · 3:07

   Laeticia Amihere makes two point shot

10. 1st Quarter · 3:07

    Laeticia Amihere makes free throw 1 of 1

11. 1st Quarter · 2:48

    Flau'jae Johnson makes two point shot (Awa Fam assists)

12. 1st Quarter · 2:25

    Flau'jae Johnson makes driving layup (Natisha Hiedeman assists)

13. 1st Quarter · 2:12

    Laeticia Amihere makes free throw 1 of 2

14. 1st Quarter · 2:12

    Laeticia Amihere makes free throw 2 of 2

15. 1st Quarter · 1:51

    Flau'jae Johnson makes 12-foot driving floating jump shot (Dominique Malonga assists)

16. 1st Quarter · 1:36

    Kiah Stokes makes free throw 1 of 2

17. 1st Quarter · 1:30

    Juste Jocyte makes 25-foot three point jumper (Veronica Burton assists)

18. 1st Quarter · 1:19

    Jade Melbourne makes driving layup

19. 1st Quarter · 1:19

    Jade Melbourne makes free throw 1 of 1

20. 1st Quarter · 56.6

    Laeticia Amihere makes 9-foot driving floating jump shot (Juste Jocyte assists)

21. 1st Quarter · 34.7

    Mackenzie Holmes makes driving layup

22. 2nd Quarter · 9:38

    Juste Jocyte makes 26-foot three point jumper (Tiffany Hayes assists)

23. 2nd Quarter · 8:44

    Tiffany Hayes makes free throw 2 of 2

24. 2nd Quarter · 7:57

    Dominique Malonga makes 6-foot two point shot (Jade Melbourne assists)

25. 2nd Quarter · 7:34

    Tiffany Hayes makes 24-foot three point jumper (Juste Jocyte assists)

26. 2nd Quarter · 7:10

    Laeticia Amihere makes running layup (Juste Jocyte assists)

27. 2nd Quarter · 6:40

    Juste Jocyte makes 23-foot three point jumper (Kiah Stokes assists)

28. 2nd Quarter · 5:28

    Kaitlyn Chen makes 23-foot running jump shot (Laeticia Amihere assists)

29. 2nd Quarter · 5:02

    Natisha Hiedeman makes 7-foot two point shot

30. 2nd Quarter · 4:46

    Juste Jocyte makes 6-foot layup (Kaitlyn Chen assists)

31. 2nd Quarter · 4:11

    Laeticia Amihere makes free throw 1 of 2

32. 2nd Quarter · 4:11

    Laeticia Amihere makes free throw 2 of 2

33. 2nd Quarter · 3:26

    Kaila Charles makes driving layup

34. 2nd Quarter · 2:47

    Kaila Charles makes 26-foot three point jumper (Kaitlyn Chen assists)

35. 2nd Quarter · 1:11

    Dominique Malonga makes free throw 1 of 2

36. 2nd Quarter · 1:11

    Dominique Malonga makes free throw 2 of 2

37. 2nd Quarter · 53.2

    Kaila Charles makes 6-foot driving floating jump shot (Veronica Burton assists)

38. 2nd Quarter · 3.0

    Kiah Stokes makes 5-foot jump bank shot (Kaila Charles assists)

39. 3rd Quarter · 9:39

    Veronica Burton makes 26-foot three point jumper (Tiffany Hayes assists)

40. 3rd Quarter · 8:25

    Kaila Charles makes 26-foot three point jumper (Tiffany Hayes assists)

41. 3rd Quarter · 7:58

    Tiffany Hayes makes driving layup

42. 3rd Quarter · 6:45

    Taylor Thierry makes 24-foot three point jumper (Natisha Hiedeman assists)

43. 3rd Quarter · 4:15

    Flau'jae Johnson makes 28-foot three pointer

44. 3rd Quarter · 3:59

    Veronica Burton makes free throw 1 of 2

45. 3rd Quarter · 3:59

    Veronica Burton makes free throw 2 of 2

46. 3rd Quarter · 3:44

    Natisha Hiedeman makes 27-foot three point jumper (Flau'jae Johnson assists)

47. 3rd Quarter · 3:15

    Dominique Malonga makes 7-foot turnaround jump shot (Stefanie Dolson assists)

48. 3rd Quarter · 3:15

    Dominique Malonga makes free throw 1 of 1

49. 3rd Quarter · 2:22

    Flau'jae Johnson makes 27-foot three point jumper (Natisha Hiedeman assists)

50. 3rd Quarter · 2:04

    Kaitlyn Chen makes 27-foot three point jumper (Tiffany Hayes assists)

51. 3rd Quarter · 1:26

    Kaila Charles makes 6-foot two point shot (Tiffany Hayes assists)

52. 3rd Quarter · 1:08

    Taylor Thierry makes 6-foot layup (Flau'jae Johnson assists)

53. 3rd Quarter · 33.8

    Awa Fam makes layup (Mackenzie Holmes assists)

54. 3rd Quarter · 1.1

    Flau'jae Johnson makes free throw 1 of 2

55. 3rd Quarter · 1.1

    Flau'jae Johnson makes free throw 2 of 2

56. 4th Quarter · 8:56

    Awa Fam makes 27-foot three point jumper (Mackenzie Holmes assists)

57. 4th Quarter · 8:07

    Awa Fam makes 25-foot three point jumper (Taina Mair assists)

58. 4th Quarter · 7:06

    Veronica Burton makes 5-foot layup (Kaila Charles assists)

59. 4th Quarter · 6:49

    Mackenzie Holmes makes layup (Awa Fam assists)

60. 4th Quarter · 5:16

    Dominique Malonga makes free throw 1 of 2

61. 4th Quarter · 3:53

    Kaitlyn Chen makes 12-foot driving floating jump shot (Kaila Charles assists)

62. 4th Quarter · 54.0

    Mackenzie Holmes makes 5-foot two point shot (Taylor Thierry assists)

63. 4th Quarter · 33.8

    Kaitlyn Chen makes 11-foot driving floating jump shot (Veronica Burton assists)