Strong Third Quarter Catapults Aces to 91-81 Win at Golden State
WNBA Las Vegas Aces

Strong Third Quarter Catapults Aces to 91-81 Win at Golden State

Published on May 31, 2026 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Las Vegas Aces News Release


SAN FRANCISCO - The Las Vegas Aces (5-3) got back on the winning track in a 91-81 victory over the Golden State Valkyries (5-3) in Ballhalla behind a dominating third quarter on both ends of the court. A'ja Wilson tallied game-highs of 28 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocked shots; Jackie Young flirted with a triple-double with 23 points, 9 assists and 7 rebounds; NaLyssa Smith nearly recorded a double-double with 15 points and 9 rebounds; and Steph Talbot recorded season-highs of 10 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

Gabby Williams led Golden State with 20 points, while Janelle Salaun recorded 16 points off the bench and Kayla Thornton added 12.

Stats | Gallery | Highlights

Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final

LVA 21 22 29 19 91

GSV 23 18 13 27 81

1st Quarter Highlights (Golden State 23, Las Vegas 21)

The Aces struck first with a bucket from Young and took an early 15-10 lead with under four minutes to go. Thornton hit back-to-back 3s to give Golden State its first lead at 16-15. The lead went back and forth throughout the quarter, which included 4 ties and 3 lead changes, and the largest gap was 5 points. Las Vegas shot 43.8% (7-16 FGs) from the floor and 33.3% (2-6 3pt FGs) from distance. Of Golden State's 23 points, 15 came from distance (5-11 3FGs, .455) and only 6 came from inside the arc (3-11 FGs, .273). Williams led all scorers with 8 points, while Young led the Aces with 7.

2nd Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 43, Golden State 41)

Las Vegas' first 3 baskets came from beyond the arc, including a pair by Talbot for a 30-28 lead. The Valks regained the lead at 33-30 after 5 quick points from Cecilia Zandalasini. Neither team led by more than 4 points in the second, which was comprised of 9 lead changes and 2 ties, and the Aces took the lead for good, 42-41, with 76 seconds on the clock. Golden State scored 12 of their 18 second quarter points from 3-point with only 2 2-pointers. Wilson (9 points) and Smith (4) combined for the Aces last 13 of the half and held a 43-41 edge heading into the locker room. Wilson's 9 led all scorers and Zandalasini topped with 8 for the home team.

3rd Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 72, Golden State 54)

The Aces scored the first 7 points for a 50-41 lead and held the Valkyries without a made field goal for over four minutes until Thornton hit a 3 four minutes in. Led by Young's trio of 3s, Las Vegas went on a 14-1 run over a two and a half minute span to expand its lead to 64-47. Las Vegas held Golden State to 13 points in the third, 5 of which came from the free throw line. The Aces hit a hot 55% from the field (11-20 FGs), and were credited with 10 assists on 11 baskets, while holding the Valkyries to an icy 18.8% (3-16 FGs) from the floor. Further, the Aces outrebounded the Valks 13-6, scored 9 points off their 5 turnovers, outscored Golden State 14-2 in the paint and 10-3 on second chances. Wilson scored 13 points and Young had 11, while no Valkryies player scored more than 3.

4th Quarter Highlights (Las Vegas 91, Golden State 81)

The Aces extended their lead in the final frame, going up by as many as 24 at the 7:15 mark, 82-58. After swapping baskets, Golden State went on a 16-2 run to cut the deficit to 8, 87-79. However, the Valks comeback push was halted by a Chelsea Gray jumper with 47.5 seconds left to put the game out of reach. Las Vegas connected on 6 of 14 (.429) from the field; Golden State shot 8 of 17 (.471). The Aces went scoreless from beyond the arc (0-2 3FGs), while the Valkyries connected on 5 of their 7 3-pointers (.714). Salaun and Williams scored 8 apiece; Smith led the Aces with 7.

KEY STATS

The Aces scored the second-most points in the paint the Valks have allowed all season (40 vs Indiana, May 28). The Valks entered the game averaging 37.4 paint points and were held to their lowest mark on the season by 12 (28 vs New York, May 21).

The Aces held the Valks, who entered the game shooting 44.3% from inside the arc, to 23.1% (9-39 FGs) of their 2-point attempts.

Golden State entered the game averaging 10.9 made 3s a game and finished with a season-high 16, eclipsing the previous high of 15 made 3s at Seattle on May 8.

Las Vegas upped its overall record to 5-1 against Golden State and 2-1 in the Bay Area.

The Aces dished out their second-most assists on the season, passing out 26 on 33 baskets, two shy of the 28 dimes dished against Los Angeles on May 10.

The 81% from the line shot by the Aces equaled their best shooting at the stripe (81% vs Los Angeles, May 23) this year.

FGM-A PCT 3PM-A PCT FTM-A PCT OFF DEF REB AT PF ST TO BK

LVA 33 -69 . 478 8-22 .364 17-21 .810 12 33 45 26 18 5 15 8

GSV 25- 74 .338 16-35 . 457 15-17 . 882 9 24 33 16 21 9 12 0

Points scored ...

In the Paint 2nd Chance Fast Break Off TOs Bench

LVA 38 20 5 8 10

GSV 16 9 8 14 8

GAME NOTES

Young entered the game needing just 17 points to reach the 3,500-point plateau. With her 23, she now has 3,506 and is the 24th player in league history with at least 3,500 points, 1,000 rebounds and 1,000 assists. Doing so in 251 games, she is the third-fastest, trailing only Cappie Pondexter and Diana Taurasi, who both did so in their 246 th game. At age 28 and 257 days, Young is the youngest to do so, jumping ahead of Taurasi (29 years, 47 days).

With today's win, Becky Hammon became the second-fastest coach in WNBA history to reach 150 coaching victories, combining regular season and playoff wins. Hammon coached her 205th game on Sunday and only trailed behind Van Chancellor, who had win No. 150 in 198 games. Tied as third-fastest are Michael Cooper and Cheryl Reeve, who did so in 212.

Wilson extended her league-leading consecutive 20-point games streak to 6. The second-longest streak is 2 (Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd). Wilson owns the all-time record for consecutive 20-point games with 20, which bridged the 2023-2024 seasons.

Wilson now has 168 career games with at least 20 points, which lists No. 3 behind Tina Charles (190) and Diana Taurasi (259) on the all-time list.

Wilson, who had 4 blocks, now has 551 on her career to become just the 5th player in WNBA history with at least 5,500 points, 2,500 rebounds and 550 blocked shots (Sylvia Fowles, Brittney Griner, Lisa Leslie, Candace Parker).

Wilson entered the game tied with Brittney Griner (2,544) at No. 17 on the league's all-time rebounding list and with her 15 rebounds, leapfrogged past Breanna Stewart (2,551) for the No. 16 spot with 2,559 career caroms. No. 15 is DeLisha Milton-Jones (2,574).

Wilson upped her 20-point double-double total to 93, which trails only Tina Charles (110) on the all-time 20/10 double-double list; she also increased her league-leading 20-point, 15-rebound double-double league record to 24.

Wilson has the second-longest active streak in the league for double-digit scoring games with 32.

The Aces were without the services of Dana Evans (lower left leg) and Jewell Loyd (left leg).

NEXT UP

Las Vegas head to Southern California for a rematch against the Los Angeles Sparks on Tuesday, June 2, at Crypto.com Arena.The game, which tips at 7 p.m., will be broadcast locally on The Spot-Vegas 34.

Check out the Las Vegas Aces Statistics

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Women's National Basketball Association Stories from May 31, 2026


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