After making WNBA Finals history in Game 4, Golden State Valkyries center Kiah Stokes came back for more as she scored her 2026 playoff-high in Game 5 to lead the Valkyries to a 64-55 victory. The veteran center is playing in her ninth playoff season, her first with the Golden State, and her recent performances justify the crowd’s reaction tonight. After the game, an 18,000-strong crowd was on their feet, showing Stokes the respect the former three-time WNBA champion deserves.

Taking the momentum from the Game 4 win at State Farm Arena, Kiah Stokes and the Valkyries maintained their defensive prowess, holding the Dream to a season-low score of 55, while improving on their scoring from last game. Stokes, who matched Veronic Burton for the most points and rebounds for the team, became the center of the Chase Center crowd’s attention as she gave her postgame interview on the court.

Ballhalla echoed as Stokes spoke, with fans in purple chanting, “MVP! MVP! MVP!”, as a video posted to X by Winsidr’s Madisyn Cunningham. The chanting did not stop the entire time that Stokes spoke, proving the impact she had on the night.

Kiah Stokes put up another Finals MVP-calibre performance, as she was once again put on Angel Reese duty by the Valkyries’ head coach Natalie Nakase. Stokes, who was recently named to the 2026 All-Defensive Second Team, held the Dream’s lead scorers this postseason to only seven points in Game 5. 

While Reese did contribute by adding 15 rebounds, Stokes refused to allow her a clear shot on target, with Reese ending the night shooting 2-of-8 from the field. Rhyne Howard anchored the Dream offense, scoring a game-high 20 points, while Jordin Canada and Allisha Gray added 12 and 10 points, respectively. 

Beyond defense, Stokes made her presence felt on both ends of the court. She ended the night with a team-high of 13 points and eight rebounds, shooting 5-of-6 from the field. But what left fans shocked was her shooting beyond the arc. She scored three of the four three-pointers she attempted, a season high from the veteran. 

This is the second matchup in a row that Stokes has made life difficult for Reese. Game 4 saw Stokes crack the Angel Reese code, as she held the forward to eight points and nine rebounds, forcing Reese to shoot 2-of-12 from the field. After Game 4, Stokes opened up about what it takes to guard a player like Reese.

“She’s been the head of the snake all series, so for me it was just trying to make every look that she had in the basket difficult. It’s a tough job, but I think being our best defensive big, I got to own up to that challenge. Like I said, it was just trying to make her take the difficult shots.”

After a performance like that, it is no surprise that Ballhalla roared in support of the Finals MVP case. Her case was further strengthened by the fact that she made WNBA history in Game 4 by making 14 blocks across the first four Finals games against the Dream, crossing the previous record of 12 held by Sylvia Fowles and Brittney Griner. She added to that record by making another three blocks in Game 5. 

And the love flowed both ways, with Stokes addressing the incredible support Valkyries fans had shown her through the playoffs. 

“This fanbase, y’all are amazing. We couldn’t do this without y’all. You guys are really our sixth man all season. We appreciate you, but we not done yet,” Stokes said. “We got one more, so we just gotta make sure it don’t matter what time we play, all we need is two hoops, 94 feet, and each other; that’s all we need.”

With Game 5 secured, the Valkyries need to win just one more game to become the youngest franchise to win a championship, 2026 being their second year of existence. Atlanta Dream will have to pull up their socks and find a solution to their Kiah Stokes problem if they hope to extend the series to Game 7.