The Golden State Valkyries led by as many as 22 points in their 76-70 Commissioner's Cup victory over the Seattle Storm at Chase Center on Saturday. With the win, the Valkyries became the fastest expansion team to five wins in WNBA history, surpassing the win total of the most recent expansion team for an entire season — the Atlanta Dream went 4-30 in their inaugural season. Golden State extended their winning streak to three games, the longest winning streak in franchise history and snapped the Storm's three-game win streak. Kayla Thornton led the way with 22 points and 11 rebounds for her third consecutive double-double. Temi Fágbénlé added 16 points and seven rebounds, contributing to the Valkyries' 20-point paint points advantage (46-26).

VALKYRIES BUILD SIGNIFICANT FIRST-HALF LEAD
The Valkyries led by as many as 15 points in the first half, fueled by a 23-5 run over a seven-minute span. During that run, Golden State held Seattle to 1-for-8 shooting and got key contributions from various sources. Monique Billings made her mark on both ends of the floor at the end of the first quarter, blocking center Dominique Malonga and her 7'1 wingspan at the rim and finishing a put-back to beat the buzzer on the ensuing offensive possession. Kate Martin went a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line during the run, craftily drawing fouls on a pair of jumpers. Kayla Thornton led all players with 11 points and eight rebounds in the half, including eight points and back-to-back deep 3-pointers in the second quarter. Golden State entered the break with a 13-point advantage.

LEITE'S CRAFTY LAYUPS
Carla Leite has been a dynamic finisher around the rim for the Valkyries and her versatile layup package was on display on Saturday. Leite opened with two scoop layups in the first quarter, using her speed to beat her defender off the bounce all the way to the rack. In the second quarter, she had two more finishes, including one with her offhand after a steal and score in transition. The degree of difficulty intensified in the third quarter as she switched hands mid-air for a smothered contested floater. Later in the frame, she went up and around Seattle's 6'6 shot-blocker for another lefty layup. Leite finished with 14 points on 6-for-10 shooting with six layups.

ANOTHER THORNTON DOUBLE-DOUBLE
Kayla Thornton is tied for fourth in the league in double-doubles this season (4) and became the sixth player with three straight double-doubles with Saturday's 22-point, 11-rebound outing. Thornton's 22 points tied a career-high mark and she accounted for all of the Valkyries' made 3-pointers (3). Fans can vote Thornton to the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game at https://valkyries.wnba.com/all-star.

UP NEXT
The Valkyries will visit the Wings and Paige Bueckers, the first overall pick of the 2025 WNBA Draft, in Dallas on Tuesday to conclude group play for the Commissioner's Cup. Northern California fans can watch at KPIX (Bay Area) or KMAX (Sacramento).