ATLANTA -- And we're all tied up.
The Golden State Valkyries made some changes in their starting lineup, built a 16-point lead and then held off the Atlanta Dream to win Game 4 67-62 and knot the WNBA Finals at 2-2.
The series shifts to San Francisco for Monday's Game 5 (8 p.m.) at Chase Center.
ESPN was on site Saturday and provided postgame analysis and updates and highlights from courtside.
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Postgame analysis | Relive the action


(2) Golden State Valkyries 67,
(4) Atlanta Dream 62
How the Valkyries won the game: It really started with the lead they built before halftime, where they jumped ahead by as many as 16, the Dream's largest deficit of the postseason. Golden State rocked Atlanta back on its heels for the first time in a while, mixing in some zone defense, forcing turnovers and dominating the offensive glass.
In a role reversal from the past two games, the Dream committed 14 first-half turnovers, which Golden State turned into 16 points. Kaila Charles and Tiffany Hayes entered the starting lineup for Kayla Thornton and Cecilia Zandalasini and did their part, Charles finishing with a plus/minus of plus-14 and Hayes adding 13 points. Zandalasini was still impactful coming off the bench, with a plus/minus of plus-20.
At halftime, the Valkyries had 40 field goal attempts to the Dream's 19 -- pretty much a guaranteed loss if you are Atlanta. Golden State finally managed to slow down Angel Reese, who finished 2-for-12 from the field for eight points, with nine rebounds, four fouls and six turnovers.
Atlanta technically won the second half by 11 but couldn't get over the hump. The Dream shot just 33% on the night and 4-for-23 from 3, and still took 18 fewer shots than the Valkyries. And they let a ton of points get away at the free throw line, where they went 22-for-31.
What the win means for Golden State: The Valkyries take this series back home having stolen one on the road and evening things up to avoid going down 3-1, which would have felt nearly insurmountable. And from here, as Kiah Stokes pointed out, it's basically a best-of-three series where they'll have home-court advantage for Game 5 and, if necessary, Game 7.
Which team has the edge going into Game 5: After the Valkyries didn't look like themselves the previous two games, especially defensively, this was a confidence-instilling performance that they are very much still in this series. Coach Natalie Nakase said going into Game 4 that she couldn't let her team down, and with the adjustments and game plan she came up with for Saturday, she did not. While the Valkyries lost Games 2 and 3 by a combined 40 points -- and even this win was a bit of a grind -- what matters is the series is tied at 2-2 and now they will play back in front of their incredible environment at Ballhalla. -- Alexa Philippou

