The Valkyries made a lot of roster changes this season. Their latest move was waiving veteran Stephanie Talbot to bring in Iliana Rupert. Golden State landed Rupert in the expansion draft, snagging her from the Atlanta Dream. Unlike the Valkyries’ other expansion draft picks, Rupert wasn’t ready to join the team at the start of the season.
The Valkyries were patient, however, waiting for Rupert to finish representing France in EuroBasket. That patience has paid off. Rupert just got her first start of the season and helped the Valkyries to a tough 68-67 win over the Washington Mystics that could have serious implications for the playoff race.
The Valkyries won a hard-fought game against the Mystics
The Valkyries were extremely short-handed in Washington. Kayla Thornton, who is out for the season, Monique Billings, and Cecilia Zandalasini all missed the game. Nevertheless, the Valkyries got off to a great start, leading 46-34 at the end of the first half.
Iliana Rupert was a huge part of that early success. It was only her fourth game with the Valkyries, but, since Billings and Zandalasini were out, she got the start. Rupert played 33 minutes and finished the game with 11 points on efficient shooting, seven rebounds, and two steals. She was the team’s leading rebounder alongside Veronica Burton and the second-leading scorer behind Kate Martin.
Nine of Rupert’s eleven points came in the first quarter. She drained three 3-pointers, exemplifying her potential as a true stretch big. Much like the rest of the team, Rupert slowed down after that. The Valkyries scored only 22 points in the second half, just barely overcoming a comeback from the Mystics. Rupert didn’t score, but still played big minutes down the stretch.
Without her hot shooting in the first quarter, the Valkyries may not have had the cushion necessary to survive the Mystics’ second-half comeback. Now, the next step for Rupert is to play that well for longer stretches in games.
Rupert fits well with the Valkyries
Rupert may have only played four games, but her fit with the Valkyries is obvious. A big part of the Valkyries’ identity is competing hard on defense and spacing the floor on offense. Rupert does just that, and also adds some much-needed size to the roster.
She also gives the Valkyries another exciting young talent. After some big changes, like waiving Julie Vanloo and Stephanie Talbot, the Valkyries roster is rather young. Laeticia Amihere, Veronica Burton, Kaitlyn Chen, Carla Leite, Kate Martin, Iliana Rupert, and Janelle Salaün are all 25 or younger.
The more time she spends with the team, the more consistent her on-court production will become. Just four games in, Rupert has already internalized the Valkyries’ philosophy.
When asked about the Valkyries’ team effort in the win over Washington, Rupert said, “That’s also the big strength of our team…that the threat can come from everybody, and I think we’ve been showing that in the last couple of games. Even though we lost a couple of players, we stick together.”