Basketball: phenomenal, French Gabby Williams wins the WNBA title

We only saw her on the floor: Frenchwoman Gabby Williams produced an incredible performance on Saturday with the Golden State Valkyries to beat Atlanta (68-63) and win her first WNBA title. In an electric atmosphere in San Francisco for this final match of the final, the French captain crushed her opponents, with 30 points, at the end of an impressive second half.

30 points and a crazy second half

“I love moments like this! Nat (Natalie Nakase, the coach, editor's note) told me to be patient in the first half, it was hard, but I did it and it paid off!” says Gabby Williams, ecstatic after the match, wearing a cap with “Champions” written on her head.

The 30-year-old Frenchwoman had an exceptional second half of the match, with 28 points scored, a record for a half in a WNBA final. With this monstrous performance, she also won the title of best player of the finals (MVP).

“Don’t waste Halloween!”

Gabby Williams was omnipresent and offered a festival of three three-point baskets in a row in the third quarter.

She continued her momentum in the final minutes, scoring her free throws and scoring an incredible basket from distance, behind the arc, in front of more than 18,000 excited spectators, at 02:19 from the end (60-57).

“I wasn’t going to lose Halloween!” she says with a smile on her face.

“We have people ready to give everything to win a match. They don't care about scoring points. They want to defend and get rebounds. They are ready to do anything to get there, and this is how we have established a very good culture here in San Francisco, rejoices Gabby Williams.

“It’s a message to all those who have been underestimated or misunderstood (...). It’s proof that if you put all your heart and soul into it, you can win titles,” adds her coach Natalie Nakase.

With three matches won each, the two teams took time to decide between themselves in this final duel of the final.

The Valkyries started better, inflicting 8-0 from the start on Atlanta, but the Dream reacted with a series of 21 points to 6 to take control. Then Gabby Williams took charge of the match and decided the outcome of this neck-and-neck battle. “Right away, it’s really very hard. But we will be back,” says Atlanta star Angel Reese, with a broken voice and tears in her eyes.

The Valkyries win the first WNBA title in their history, after only two years in the North American basketball league. Atlanta, for its part, fails in the final for the fourth time.