Valkyries win on back-to-back days with victory over sliding Sky

Veronica Burton scored 18 points and Janelle Salaun added 16 as the visiting Golden State Valkyries turned up their defensive pressure in the fourth quarter to earn a 73-66 victory over the Chicago Sky on Saturday.

Iliana Rupert had 14 points and Carla Leite added 11 for the expansion Valkyries, who played on consecutive days for the first time and won both games after facing Washington on Thursday.

Golden State (14-13) shot just 36.9 percent from the floor and still won for the fourth time in five games while moving above .500 for the first time since July 9.

Elizabeth Williams scored 15 points while Kamilla Cardoso had 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Sky (7-20), who saw their season-long losing streak reach seven games. Rachel Banham also had 14 points, while Kia Nurse added 10.

The injury report was extensive with the Valkyries without leading scorer and rebounder Kayla Thornton (knee) and second-leading scorer Tiffany Hayes (leg), as well as Monique Billings (ankle) and Cecilia Zandalasini (foot).

The Sky were without leading scorer and rebounder Angel Reese (back) for the fourth time in six games. Ariel Atkins (back) and Hailey Van Lith (ankle) also were out, while Courtney Vandersloot (knee) is done for the season.

In her Valkyries debut, Kaila Charles scored five points with five rebounds, while Sevgi Uzun scored five points with four rebounds in her Sky debut.

The Sky led by as many as eight points in the third quarter and went into the fourth with a 54-52 lead. The Valkyries opened the final quarter on a 12-2 run to take a 64-56 lead with 5:01 remaining.

Chicago pulled within 67-66 on a layup by Cardoso with 2:23 remaining. Salaun scored for Golden State with 2:13 remaining for a 69-66 lead before the Valkyries forced Nurse into a turnover with 44.3 seconds left. Burton made two free throws with 34.6 seconds left for a 71-66 lead.

The Valkyries shot just 35.3 percent in the first half to 48.3 percent for the Sky but were even on the scoreboard 37-37 at the break.

--Field Level Media