Natalie Nakase and the Golden State Valkyries are now behind the Atlanta Dream 2-1 in the WNBA Finals after losing Game 3 at State Farm Arena on Wednesday. Angel Reese and company blew out the Gabby Williams-led squad, 97-71.
Reese recorded another double-double with 21 points and 12 rebounds, along with three assists and three steals, to give the Dream the lead in the championship series. Rhyne Howard added 16 points, four rebounds, four assists and five steals for Atlanta.
No one from the Valkyries scored more than 20 points, with Williams finishing as the team’s leading scorer with 15. Tiffany Hayes tallied 14 points off the bench.
Making the loss even more frustrating for Nakase, the Golden State head coach was assessed a technical foul late in the third quarter.
Brett Davis-Imagn Images via Reuters Connect
After the referees called an offensive foul on Williams with 48 seconds left in the quarter, Nakase entered the court to protest the call on Williams, prompting the technical foul, per USA Today.
It was Nakase’s first technical foul of the 2026 WNBA playoffs. The league’s rules state that a player or coach’s first two technical fouls in the postseason each carry a $500 fine. The third tech is punishable by a $1,000 fine, while the fourth leads to a $1,500 fine and a one-game suspension.
Nakase and the Valkyries can’t focus too much on everything that went wrong in Game 3, though. The two teams will face each other again in Atlanta on Saturday, with Golden State expected to be motivated to tie the series at 2-2.
