Veronica Burton and Gabby Williams combined for 50 points in the Valkyries’ 87-81 Commissioner’s Cup victory over the Phoenix Mercury at Chase Center on Tuesday. Burton and Williams each had 25 points to co-lead the Valkyries — Burton tied her season-high and Williams recorded her second consecutive 20-point game for the first time in her career. Burton also paced the Valkyries with eight assists and Williams' clutch steal prevented a game-tying attempt for the Mercury.

"We can relate to one another by the way we've both come up through this league and had to kind of find our way through," Williams shared about her rapport with Burton. "I feel like it's very easy for us to know what to say to the other one, because we understand that. Even though it's been a short amount of time, I know how to get to her and she knows what to say to me to help motivate me and I think that's just helped our relationship and has allowed us to play confidently.”

"You see it on a night in, night out basis her ability to score within our offense, she's able to create her own shot when need be and then she's able to really fit into how we run our offense," Burton said of Williams. "She's just a really dynamic scorer and in big moments, she gets a steal; and at the most important time of the game, then she's also getting clutch buckets down the stretch. There's a steadiness to her and she's super reliable. Her composure, her ability to keep us together, we really feel it and so it really has elevated us as a whole.”

With the win, the Valkyries are now 2-2 in Commissioner’s Cup play and drop the Mercury to 2-2. Currently, the Minnesota Lynx and Las Vegas Aces are atop the West Cup standings as the only remaining unbeaten teams — Golden State lost to both teams by a combined margin of eight points. 

MOMENTUM SHIFTS BACK-AND-FORTH IN OPENING QUARTER
Veronica Burton scored the Valkyries’ first five points, Gabby Williams added a layup and Kiah Stokes' 3-pointer extended Golden State's lead to seven, 10-3. However, the Mercury would respond with fervor, going on a 13-0 run to take a 16-10 lead. The Valkyries went 0-for-5 from the field and committed two turnovers over that span. Burton ended the Valkyries’ skid with a reverse layup — the beginning of a 9-0 response from Golden State. Burton scored nine points, playing all 10 minutes in the first quarter and the Valkyries won the back-and-forth quarter by four points. 

BURTON’S HIGHEST-SCORING HALF OF SEASON HELPS VALKS EXTEND LEAD TO 17
The Valkyries had a much firmer control of the second quarter and Burton continued to lead the charge. Burton scored 10 points, hitting both of her field goal attempts and adding five more free throws in the second quarter, giving her a season-high 19 first-half points on 5-for-7 shooting, two shy of her career-high for a half. Burton hit a left-wing 3-pointer during a 9-0 Valkyries run and capped an 18-5 run to close the half with an isolation turnaround jumper. The Valkyries led by 17 points at halftime and Burton was a plus-18 in 17 minutes. Tiffany Hayes also hit both of her field goal attempts in the half, including a buzzer-beating 3-point play and was a plus-15 in eight minutes off the bench. Kayla Thornton had the highest plus minus of the group in the first half, at a plus-21 with seven points in 19 minutes. 

MERCURY SHOOT 80 PERCENT FROM FIELD IN 3RD QUARTER, PULL WITHIN FIVE POINTS
The Mercury cut a significant chunk out of the Valkyries’ lead, outscoring them by 12 points in the third quarter and trimming the deficit to five points. Alyssa Thomas imposed her will in her own unique way, setting the pace as a primary ball handler, finding her teammates for quality looks and taking high percentage push shots around the basket. Phoenix shot 80 percent from the field in the third quarter, going 12-for-15 from the field and Golden State was about the inverse, shooting 23.5 percent, going 4-for-17. 

CLOSING IN THE CLUTCH
The Valkyries had to earn this win down the stretch as the Mercury got within two points with 4:06 remaining. Kayla Thornton drained a clutch corner three that put the Valkyries up five points with 2:03 left. After a Mercury jump shot, Gabby Williams responded with a 3-point play — Veronica Burton assisted both baskets. A 3-point play by Alyssa Thomas gave Phoenix life, but Williams literally snatched it away, coming up with a timely steal with 14 seconds left, preventing the Mercury from even attempting a game-tying shot in a one-possession game. Williams split her free throws and Thornton added a pair to close the game. The Valkyries attempted 28 free throws on Tuesday and made 23 of them, giving them an 11-point advantage from the foul line. 

UP NEXT
The Valkyries continue Commissioner’s Cup play in Seattle, facing the Storm on Friday (7 p.m. PT). 

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