Temi

Fágbénlé

Fagbénlé was a late scratch on Wednesday, as she was ruled out just before Wednesday’s Game 2 tipoff, and was replaced in the Valkyries’ opening lineup by Iliana Rupert. Fagbénlé had tallied 12 points, three rebounds, and three assists in the Game 1 loss — her absence will leave Golden State’s frontcourt noticeably thinner. Expect Rupert and Monique Billings to see more minutes than usual in Fagbénlé’s absence.

Fágbénlé finished Tuesday’s defeat with her first complete stat line since August 25 and her second double-digit scoring effort of the month. While Golden State leads the WNBA in points allowed per game and is fifth in defensive rating, the team ranking dead last in pace has been a factor. To have a chance of advancing in the postseason, the offense will need to be more consistent, and that includes Fágbénlé. Tuesday’s performance was a step in the right direction for Fágbénlé, who will need to be just as good, if not better, against the Lynx in Thursday’s regular-season finale. A loss to Minnesota would lock the Valkyries into the eighth seed and a first-round matchup with the Lynx.

Fágbénlé led the Valkyries in scoring for the first time all season, thanks to efficient shooting on significant volume. The scoring total marked the first time she’s scored in double digits in over a month, while securing a three-point make for the third time in the past four games. Fágbénlé has played well in Golden State’s four-game winning streak and should be in a good position to log another productive outing on Thursday against a banged-up Wings team.

With Tiffany Hayes and Carla Leite both ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Wings, Kaila Charles gets her first start as a member of the Valkyries. Charles provided meaningful minutes off the bench against the Mercury on Friday night adding nine points and five rebounds in 26 minutes. With Charles moving to the starting lineup, head coach Natalie Nakase will have to call upon guards Kate Martin and Kaitlyn Chen.

Injured during Sunday’s game against the Dream, Rupert is in the league’s concussion protocol and is considered day-to-day. While Laeticia Amihere played 14 minutes off the bench against Atlanta, a more realistic possibility is that starter Temi Fágbénlé plays more after receiving the same amount of playing time due to foul trouble.

Rupert’s injury came early in the third quarter after catching an elbow to the face from Atlanta’s Brionna Jones. Rupert remained down on the floor for a few moments before being helped to the locker room. She was immediately replaced in the lineup by Temi Fágbénlé before eventually being ruled out. Rupert is averaging 8.8 points and 3.3 rebounds for the Valkyries in her third WNBA season. Her injury leaves Golden State’s frontcourt even thinner.

Charles made a lot of the hustle plays for the Valkyries on Wednesday night proving exactly why head coach Natalie Nakase was so interested in signing the wing to a first seven-day contract on August 1. With Kayla Thornton out for the season and Monique Billings out for weeks rather than days, the Valkyries took advantage of an opportunity to add to their wing depth. Charles moved well off the ball scoring half of her field goals on off ball movement. She got on the glass and was the team’s third highest rebounder behind Tiffany Hayes and Temi Fágbénlé. One of her scores came on a putback layup.

The Aces defense forced Leite into taking four threes instead of most of her shots coming right at the rim which is more where Leite’s kill zone is. When she had an advantageous matchup against a smaller guard, she made sure to take that defender off the dribble. But she also scored on drives coming off screening actions. On an evening when the Valkyries struggled to pass the ball, Leite had two of Golden State’s seven assists with both passes going to Temi Fágbénlé who Leite found either on a high pick-and-roll action or running the floor hard in transition.

Burton was the Valkyries most efficient scorer, the team’s top distributor and was tied for having most rebounds. She stuffed the stat sheet while facilitating the offense and playing hard nosed defense. With her 10 assists, Burton found her teammates in spots to exploit matchups and capitalize on transition opportunities. She helped create four of the Valkyries’ 11 total three-pointers in addition to finding Janelle Salaün with a minute left in regulation to score what eventually was the game winning basket. Burton found Salaün, Kate Martin and Temi Fágbénlé for three assists each in addition to a pass to Carle Leite which turned into her wide open three-pointer.

Fágbénlé was challenged to guard Shakira Austin in addition to having to score against Austin, two difficult tasks. She made her first three baskets in the first quarter and then only made two more in the next three quarters. Fágbénlé scored at the rim or by stretching out to the mid-range between 16 and 20 feet. Fágbénlé was patient on dribble handoffs especially with Veronica burton, screening for her on both a three-pointer and a slash to the basket. She also created the Kate Martin three-pointer that came just seconds before the half.