Napheesa Collier-led Lynx knock Valkyries to No. 8 seed in regular season finale

A wildly thriving first regular season concluded with a Valkyries loss in Minneapolis on Thursday night For the second time in a week the expansion group was stymied by top-seeded Minnesota in what ended up being a preview of Golden State s first round playoff series The host Lynx who did not rest their starters despite having locked up the No seed suffocated the Valkyries - loss in the season finale at Target Center The Valkyries which would have secured the No seed with a supremacy shot a ghastly from the field committed turnovers and started of from -point distance as it slid into the No slot Even if the visitors had been able to manufacture easier baskets they still would have had no answer for arguably the tournament s best athlete Napheesa Collier entered the challenge averaging points per encounter and she poured in points using a variety of smooth jumpers Veronica Burton Kaila Charles and Iliana Rupert each scored eight points for the Valkyries After trailing - at halftime the Valkyries were able to cut the deficit to - by the end of the third quarter after Rupert hit back-to-back triples to snap Golden State s wretched start from long range However the reigning championship runner up manifested why they re title favorites by starting the fourth on a - run to retake control Rupert appeared to injure herself on a fall during a fight for a rebound early in the fourth quarter and she left the match with seven minutes remaining Midway through the fourth quarter and trailing by nearly coach Natalie Nakase waved the white flag and emptied the Valkyries bench The Valkyries will remain in the Midwest for the next limited days as they prepare to play the Lynx in a first round showdown Golden State s first postseason challenge in Minnesota will tip off on Sunday and Contest of the three-game series will be played at SAP Center in San Jose on either Tuesday or Wednesday A scarce hours before tipoff Golden State Natalie Nakase downplayed the importance of the regular season finale It doesn t matter because we re preparing for all outcomes so as long as we re prepared that s the main thing Nakase stated As it was in Chase Center on Sept when they lost - the Valkyries struggled to find gaps in the Minnesota defense Golden State scored just eight points in the first quarter and just in the half Courtney Williams Collier and Kayla McBride keyed the effort for Minnesota shrinking the floor with aggressive on-ball pressure The Valkyries had no answers for Collier either who made her first two -pointers on pick-and-pop plays and was an efficient of in the first half With the loss the Valkyries concluded the regular season on a three-game losing streak The expansion franchise had clinched its postseason berth with an - win over Dallas but failed to move up in the standings Now Golden State - will shift its focus to the playoffs The Valkyries will hope that veteran guard Tiffany Hayes is able to return from a knee injury that has sidelined her since Aug and that Rupert is not hobbled