Aces dominate in the paint, down Valkyries

Jackie Young complemented 23 points with a game-high nine assists, A'ja Wilson dominated on both ends of the floor and the Las Vegas Aces snapped a two-game losing streak with a 91-81 victory over the Golden State Valkyries in San Francisco on Sunday afternoon.

Wilson finished with 28 points, 15 rebounds and four blocks for the Aces (5-3), who were coming off consecutive losses to the Los Angeles Sparks at home and Dallas Wings on the road.

Gabby Williams had a team-high 20 points for the Valkyries (5-3), who had won two straight, including at home over the Indiana Fever in their previous outing.

After Golden State used nine 3-pointers to stay within 43-31 at halftime, the Las Vegas defense took over in the third period. The Aces held the hosts to 13 points in the first 10 minutes after the break en route to opening a 72-54 advantage.

Young hit nine of her 17 shots and Wilson 11 of her 22, helping Las Vegas use 47.8% accuracy (33 of 69) to go over 90 points for the fifth time this season. The 91 points were the most scored against Golden State all season.

Meanwhile, Wilson and her mates combined to block eight Valkyries shots while limiting Golden State to just 16 points in the paint. Getting nothing easy around the hoop, the Valkyries shot just 9-for-39 (23.1%) from inside the arc.

The double-double was Wilson's third of the season, all of which have included scoring 20 or more points.

NaLyssa Smith was another strong interior force for Las Vegas, going for 15 points and nine rebounds. She made seven of her nine shots. Stephanie Talbot chipped in with 10 points.

Golden State lost despite outscoring the visitors 48-24 from beyond the arc. Williams shot 4-for-6 from deep and Kayla Thornton 4-for-7, but their teammates combined to connect just eight times in 22 tries.

The Valkyries made 16 shots from outside the 3-point line and nine from inside the arc.

Janelle Salaun totaled 16 points and Thornton 12 for Golden State. Kiah Stokes led hosts in rebounds with seven in a scoreless effort, while standout guard Veronica Burton was held to seven points to go with a team-high five assists.

The Aces' biggest lead of the game was 24 points. Golden State scored 18 of the game's final 24 points to make the final score respectable.