WNBA Champions

This sports recap for the weekend kicks off in San Francisco, where the Golden State Valkyries defeated the Atlanta Dream 68-63 on Saturday, October 31, in Game 7 of the WNBA Finals, claiming the championship with a 4-3 series win. Additionally, Max Verstappen won the Mexico City Grand Prix, and college football saw upsets like USC’s win over Ohio State.

WNBA: Valkyries Win Championship in Second Season

Game 7 took place on Saturday, October 31, at 8:00 p.m. ET at the Chase Center in San Francisco, with 18,064 fans in attendance. It was the first Game 7 in WNBA Finals history. Atlanta led 30-24 at halftime, but Gabby Williams took control of the game: she scored Golden State’s last 11 points in the third quarter and finished with 30. With this mark, she joined Penny Taylor, of Phoenix in 2007, as the only players in league history with 30 or more points in a decisive Finals game. Williams left the court with the MVP trophy in her arms.

The closing was extremely tense. Rhyne Howard tied the game 57-57 with a layup at 2:41 from the end, and Williams responded with a three-pointer. She then added two free throws at 1:40, and Kiah Stokes scored a late basket. Allisha Gray made two free throws with 11 seconds left, and Atlanta forced a jump ball between Gray and Williams. Veronica Burton got the ball and sealed the win with two free throws at 5.1 seconds.

Finals Statistics

Gabby Williams (Golden State): 30 points.
Kiah Stokes (Golden State): 13 rebounds and two blocks, in her fourth WNBA title.
Veronica Burton (Golden State): 5 assists.
Tiffany Hayes (Golden State): 11 points, at 37 years old.
Jordin Canada (Atlanta): 18 points and 5 assists.
Allisha Gray (Atlanta): 16 points.
Angel Reese (Atlanta): 8 points and 12 rebounds.

Coach Natalie Nakase had modified her starting lineup for Game 4, when her team was down 2-1 in the series. She added Kaila Charles and Tiffany Hayes and sent Kayla Thornton and Cecilia Zandalasini to the bench. Golden State won the playoff series 4-3 and had also won the regular season series 3-0 against Atlanta. In 2025, it was the first expansion organization to reach the postseason in its inaugural year, and now its title adds to the one the Golden State Warriors won in the NBA in 2022. For the Dream, this was their fourth lost Finals in history. DeWanna Bonner became the first WNBA player with 600 defensive rebounds in playoffs throughout her career.

Formula 1: Verstappen Wins in Mexico City

Max Verstappen, of Red Bull, won the Mexico City Grand Prix on Sunday, November 1, at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Lewis Hamilton had secured the first position on the starting grid and finished second. Kimi Antonelli, of Mercedes, completed the podium. These were the top ten:

1. Max Verstappen
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Kimi Antonelli
4. Charles Leclerc
5. Lando Norris
6. George Russell
7. Liam Lawson
8. Gabriel Bortoleto
9. Isack Hadjar
10. Ryo Hirakawa

In the drivers’ championship, Antonelli leads with 380 points, followed by Verstappen with 261, Hamilton with 259, Russell with 250, and Leclerc with 245. Among constructors, Mercedes has 630 points, Ferrari 504, and Red Bull 382.

College Football: Upsets on Saturday

USC 30, No. 2 Ohio State 18. Trent Mosley received a short pass and turned it into a 69-yard touchdown on the second play of the game. He finished with five receptions and 101 yards. Jayden Maiava completed 15 of 22 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown, and King Miller and Waymond Jordan added rushing touchdowns. USC (7-2, 4-2 Big Ten) won in front of 70,810 fans at the Los Angeles Coliseum, in the most important victory of Lincoln Riley’s tenure as team coach. Ohio State (6-2) played with rookie Luke Fahey, who made his debut as a starter due to Julian Sayin’s injury and threw for 260 yards. The Buckeyes had 464 total yards, but committed 11 penalties for 75 yards. Jeremiah Smith caught a one-yard touchdown with 2:12 to play, his 40th career touchdown, and broke Braylon Edwards’ Big Ten record. Ohio State had not lost two games so early in a season since 2011.

No. 1 Miami 38, North Carolina 35. The Hurricanes (8-0) escaped an upset in Chapel Hill. Mark Fletcher Jr. scored on the ground from 2 yards on fourth down with 7:49 to play, and Marquise Lightfoot forced a fumble that Justin Scott recovered with 5:33 on the clock. Darian Mensah completed 22 of 29 passes for 274 yards and three touchdowns, and Malachi Toney caught two. Billy Edwards Jr. threw for 341 yards and four touchdowns for North Carolina (4-4), which came close with a touchdown at 1:38 from the end, but Miami recovered the onside kick.

No. 3 Georgia 27, No. 17 Florida 8. At the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Chris Cole returned a fumble 66 yards for a touchdown just before halftime, with Georgia leading 24-0. The Bulldogs (7-1) took advantage of four turnovers by Florida (5-3) and dominated the ground game, 217 yards to 48. It was their sixth consecutive win in the rivalry. Jadan Baugh, the SEC leader in rushing touchdowns, was held to 38 yards on 17 carries.

Iowa State 51, No. 24 Oklahoma State 49. Kyle Konrardy made a 34-yard field goal as time expired, after the Cowboys took the lead 49-48 with 53 seconds to play. Aiden Flora ran for 221 yards and two touchdowns, and Jaylen Raynor threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns. Drew Mestemaker threw for 323 yards and five touchdowns for Oklahoma State, and both teams combined for 1,114 yards.

Syracuse 30, No. 19 SMU 27. Steve Angeli connected with tight end Noah Meyers on a 2-yard pass with 17 seconds to play. The Orange (4-4) started that series on their 32-yard line with 3:36 on the clock and trailed 27-23. It was their first win against a ranked team since November 30, 2024.

Other results: Iowa shut out No. 25 Wisconsin 30-0; No. 4 Indiana won 23-16 against Minnesota; No. 5 Notre Dame beat Navy 35-13; and No. 13 Texas Tech defeated No. 22 Arizona 34-26.

MLB: World Series Champion Crowned

The Milwaukee Brewers were crowned World Series champions on Wednesday, October 28, after defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-1 in Game 5.

Upcoming Games

Miami visits Notre Dame on Saturday, November 7.
Ohio State hosts Oregon on the same day.
Georgia visits No. 12 Mississippi, and Florida hosts Oklahoma.
Oklahoma State visits Kansas State, Iowa State visits Baylor, Syracuse hosts Clemson, and North Carolina visits UConn, all on Saturday, November 7.
SMU hosts Virginia Tech on Friday, November 6.
USC has a bye and then visits Indiana on Saturday, November 14.

Valkyries Win WNBA Title, Verstappen Takes Mexico Grand Prix, USC Upsets Ohio State