Portland Fire Lose Commissioner Cup Opener to Golden State, 95-77
Last season's expansion darlings Golden State taught Portland a lesson in three point shooting.
Before tonight’s game, the first ever Commissioner’s Cup game in Portland Fire franchise history, Golden State’s fans gave Portland guard Carla Leite a standing ovation.
Perhaps fitting at a venue WNBA fans call Ballhala, the former Valkyries rookie, swaggered onto the court like a triumphant hero. However, despite the French point guard’s best efforts, a record-setting three-point shooting mark pushed Golden State past Portland, 95-77.
Riding the hot hand, Portland started center Megan Gustafson, who notched a career-high 22 points last Saturday against Indiana. Ominously, the game’s first basket was a Kayla Thornton three pointer over the Spanish post. Later in the quarter, Gustafson scored back-to-back buckets paired with the Bay’s lost Leite Show on pick & rolls. At the 6:00 mark, Portland led 9-8.
Golden State tied the game with 4:30 remaining in the quarter, on a Thornton trey from the left wing. From there, the Valkyries held a narrow edge, led by their eleven year vet. When the opening period ended, she had 11 points on 3/6 shooting, and Golden State led 21-20.
Early in the second quarter, 2025 Valkyries first rounder Justė Jocytė swished back-to-back threes, pushing Golden State’s lead to 7 with 8:41 remaining.
Portland pulled closer two minutes later with a Bridget Carleton strike from the right wing of the arc. With 6:30 to go, the Fire trailed 33-30. Moments later, a Golden State trey on the other end pushed the margin back to two possessions. Adding insult to injury, the next Valkyries set ended with another triple by French forward Janelle Salaün. Halfway through the second quarter, the Valkyries shot 50% from the field and 52% from behind the arc.
Until the first half expired, threes kept dropping through the netting. At halftime, Golden State led 56-36 behind Thornton’s 4 triples and her team’s combined 12/23 rate from downtown. That mark set a new Golden State franchise record for three pointers made in a half. On the other side, Portland shot 14/32 from the field.
Despite the deficit, Portland fought hard. With 8:26 in the third, Carleton slashed into the paint, drew contact from Valkyries center Kiah Stokes, and sank a floater. Coming out of a timeout, the Canadian star knocked in a free throw to complete the and-1.
Halfway through the period, Portland trailed by twenty, but still found something to celebrate: their breakout star point guard Leite added to her accolades, sinking her 50th out of 52 free throws this season, good for the third highest mark in the W so far this year.
Chinese guard Kaitlyn Chen drove coast-to-coast for a buzzer-beating basket, padding Golden State’s lead to 74-56 after three quarters. Still, Portland rallied. Leite pried free on a pick & roll with 6:29 to go, finding her spot on the right edge of the high block, and drawing another foul. After sinking both free throws, the deficit was trimmed to 10. Thirty seconds later, Carleton bounced the ball to Emily Engstler in transition.
The connection seemingly woke Golden State, who roared back on an impressive run, which featured Thornton’s fifth three pointer on the night. With three minutes remaining, the Bay Area side led 88-73. From there, both sides looked to their benches. When the final buzzer sounded, Golden State emerged victorious 95-77.
With eighteen made three pointers, Golden State set an all-time franchise record for the most bombs dropped in one game.
The loss moved the Fire record to 6-5, 6th in the WNBA, and marks their first ever Commissioner’s Cup loss. Portland returns to action Friday night at 7 PM PST against the Phoenix Mercury.
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Matt Bagley is a professional sportswriter and broadcaster with a passion for women’s sports. Outside of work, he cherishes quality time with his birth family, his chosen family, and one very pesky house panther.
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