Cydney Henderson, USA TODAY Thu, October 29, 2026 at 9:01 AM UTC · 2 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement ATLANTA — The Golden State Valkyries are one win away from history.
The No. 2 seed Valkyries defeated the No. 4 seed Atlanta Dream 64-55 in Game 5 on Monday at Chase Center to improve to 3-2 in the 2026 WNBA Finals , which shifts back to Atlanta for Game 6 on Thursday, Oct. 29. Although the 12:30 p.m. ET tipoff has sparked controversy after being was moved up to accommodate a venue change to the 17,000-seat State Farm Arena , but both team's remain focused on the task at hand.
The Valkyries need one more victory to secure their first WNBA title in the franchise's second year of existence, while the Dream need one win to keep their season alive and force a decisive Game 7 in San Francisco on Saturday.
"It doesn't matter what time (Game 6) is. At the end of the day, we just need 94 feet, two hoops in each other," said Valkyries center Kiah Stokes , who's played her way into the Finals MVP conversation . "It's a close-out game. Atlanta is a great team and we don't want to give them basically any life. So as much as we love 'Ballhalla,' we don't want to come back here. So we need to go in with the mentality that we have to win. It's do or die."
Stokes has been borderline unstoppable on the defensive side of the ball, recording three or more blocks in five consecutive Finals games to tie Lisa Leslie for the longest streak in league history. But she also flexed her offensive skills in Game 5 with a playoff-high 13 points, shooting an efficient 3-of-4 from 3-point line.
Gabby Williams #1, Veronica Burton #22, Tiffany Hayes #15, and Kaila Charles #6 of the Golden State Valkyries react during the first quarter against the Atlanta Dream in game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals at Chase Center on Oct. 26, 2026 in San Francisco, Calif. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) Gabby Williams #1, Tiffany Hayes #15, and Veronica Burton #22 of the Golden State Valkyries react in front of Allisha Gray #15 of the Atlanta Dream during the first quarter in game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals at Chase Center on Oct. 26, 2026 in San Francisco, Calif. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) Arena view before game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals between the Golden State Valkyries and Atlanta Dream at Chase Center. (Kelley L Cox, Imagn Images) Recording artist Dinah Jane of music group Fifth Harmony performs the national anthem before game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals between the Golden State Valkyries and Atlanta Dream at Chase Center. (Kelley L Cox, Imagn Images) Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese (5) warms up before game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals against the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center. (Kelley L Cox, Imagn Images) 1 / 5 WNBA Finals Game 5 photos as Valkyries and Dream fight on Gabby Williams #1, Veronica Burton #22, Tiffany Hayes #15, and Kaila Charles #6 of the Golden State Valkyries react during the first quarter against the Atlanta Dream in game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals at Chase Center on Oct. 26, 2026 in San Francisco, Calif. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 1 / 5 WNBA Finals Game 5 photos as Valkyries and Dream fight on Gabby Williams #1, Veronica Burton #22, Tiffany Hayes #15, and Kaila Charles #6 of the Golden State Valkyries react during the first quarter against the Atlanta Dream in game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals at Chase Center on Oct. 26, 2026 in San Francisco, Calif. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 2 / 5 WNBA Finals Game 5 photos as Valkyries and Dream fight on Gabby Williams #1, Tiffany Hayes #15, and Veronica Burton #22 of the Golden State Valkyries react in front of Allisha Gray #15 of the Atlanta Dream during the first quarter in game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals at Chase Center on Oct. 26, 2026 in San Francisco, Calif. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 3 / 5 WNBA Finals Game 5 photos as Valkyries and Dream fight on Arena view before game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals between the Golden State Valkyries and Atlanta Dream at Chase Center. (Kelley L Cox, Imagn Images) 4 / 5 WNBA Finals Game 5 photos as Valkyries and Dream fight on Recording artist Dinah Jane of music group Fifth Harmony performs the national anthem before game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals between the Golden State Valkyries and Atlanta Dream at Chase Center. (Kelley L Cox, Imagn Images) 5 / 5 WNBA Finals Game 5 photos as Valkyries and Dream fight on Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese (5) warms up before game five of the 2026 WNBA Finals against the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center. (Kelley L Cox, Imagn Images) Dream forward Angel Reese was limited to a series-low seven points in the loss she described as "frustrating," lamenting the physicality and how she's officiated. Can she lead the Dream to a bounce back?
"I still believe in our team. I still believe that we can win this and one game at a time," Reese said. "We're just going to take it one game at a time and just get back to who we are."
USA TODAY Sports is on the ground in Atlanta and will provide live updates and highlights from Game 6 at State Farm Arena. Here's everything you need to know:
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More: 'Strength in numbers' has Valkyries one win from WNBA title
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