Rookie Lexi Held scores season-high 24 points as Mercury close on 18-1 run to beat Valkyries 86-77

PHOENIX (AP) — Rookie Lexi Held scored a season-high 24 points, Satou Sabally had 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists and the Phoenix Mercury closed on an 18-1 run to beat the Golden State Valkyries 86-77 on Thursday night.

Phoenix trailed 76-68 with 4:04 remaining.

Held put the Mercury ahead 77-76 with 1:11 remaining on a deep 3-pointer. After Golden State went 1 for 2 at the free-throw line, Sabally rebounded her own miss and put it in while being fouled. Sabally made the free throw for a three-point play and an 80-77 advantage with 33.3 left.

Golden State guard Veronica Burton missed a wide-open layup at the other end and Sabally was fouled before making two free throws for a five-point lead. The Valkyries turned it over on their next two inbound plays, and the Mercury made four straight free throws to seal it.

Held was 7 for 15 from the field, including 4 for 9 behind the arc, and 6 for 6 at the free-throw line for the best scoring output by a rookie this season, passing Paige Bueckers' mark of 21.

Phoenix (6-3) improved to 5-1 at home — a franchise best to begin a season.

Sami Whitcomb added nine points before fouling out late for Phoenix, which was without starters Kahleah Copper (left knee) and Alyssa Thomas (left calf).

Burton led Golden State (2-5) with 16 points, going 9 for 11 at the free-throw line. Temi Fagbenle had 12 points and 10 rebounds. Kayla Thornton, Cecilia Zandalasini and Julie Vanloo each scored 10.

Megan McConnell, sister of NBA guard T.J. McConnell, was wearing his No. 9 Indiana Pacers jersey on the bench after getting injured in Phoenix's loss to Minnesota on Tuesday. He was seen arriving at the NBA Finals wearing her No. 16 Mercury jersey.

AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Phoenix Mercury head coach Nate Tibbetts shouts at officials during the second half of a WNBA basketball game against the Golden State Valkyries Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Phoenix Mercury guard Sami Whitcomb (33) celebrates a score against the Golden State Valkyries with Mercury forward Satou Sabally (0) during the second half of a WNBA basketball game Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Golden State Valkyries forward Stephanie Talbot, left, is unable steal the ball from Phoenix Mercury center Murjanatu Musa, right, during the second half of a WNBA basketball game Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally celebrates a 3-pointer by Mercury's Lexi Held during the second half of a WNBA basketball game against the Golden State Valkyries Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally (0) celebrates a made 3-pointer by Mercury guard Lexi Held (1) during the second half of a WNBA basketball game against the Golden State Valkyries Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is meeting with oil executives at the White House on Friday in hopes of securing $100 billion in investments to revive Venezuela’s ability to fully tap into its expansive reserves of petroleum — a plan that rides on their comfort in making commitments in a country plagued by instability, inflation and uncertainty.

Since the U.S. military raid to capture former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump has quickly pivoted to portraying the move as a newfound economic opportunity for the U.S., seizing tankers carrying Venezuelan oil, saying the U.S. is taking over the sales of 30 million to 50 million barrels of previously sanctioned Venezuelan oil and will be controlling sales worldwide indefinitely.

On Friday, U.S. forces seized their fifth tanker over the past month that has been linked to Venezuelan oil. The action reflected the determination of the U.S. to fully control the exporting, refining and production of Venezuelan petroleum, a sign of the Trump administration's plans for ongoing involvement in the sector as it seeks commitments from private companies.

It's all part of a broader push by Trump to keep gasoline prices low. At a time when many Americans are concerned about affordability, the incursion in Venezuela melds Trump’s assertive use of presidential powers with an optical spectacle meant to convince Americans that he can bring down energy prices.

The meeting, set for 2:30 p.m. EST, will be open to the news media, according to an update to the president's daily schedule. “At least 100 Billion Dollars will be invested by BIG OIL, all of whom I will be meeting with today at The White House,” Trump said Friday in a pre-dawn social media post.

Trump is set to meet with executives from 17 oil companies, according to the White House. Among the companies attending are Chevron, which still operates in Venezuela, and ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, which both had oil projects in the country that were lost as part of a 2007 nationalization of private businesses under Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez.

The president is meeting with a wide swath of domestic and international companies with interests ranging from construction to the commodity markets. Other companies slated to be at the meeting include Halliburton, Valero, Marathon, Shell, Singapore-based Trafigura, Italy-based Eni and Spain-based Repsol.

Large U.S. oil companies have so far largely refrained from affirming investments in Venezuela as contracts and guarantees need to be in place. Trump has suggested on social media that America would help to backstop any investments.

Venezuela’s oil production has slumped below one million barrels a day. Part of Trump's challenge to turn that around will be to convince oil companies that his administration has a stable relationship with Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, as well as protections for companies entering the market.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum are slated to attend the oil executives meeting, according to the White House.

Meanwhile, the United States and Venezuelan governments said Friday they were exploring the possibility of r estoring diplomatic relations between the two countries, and that a delegation from the Trump administration arrived to the South American nation on Friday.

The small team of U.S. diplomats and diplomatic security officials traveled to Venezuela to make a preliminary assessment about the potential re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, the State Department said in a statement.

Trump also announced on Friday he’d meet with President Gustavo Petro in early February, but called on the Colombian leader to make quick progress on stemming flow of cocaine into the U.S.

Trump, following the ouster of Maduro, had made vague threats to take similar action against Petro. Trump abruptly changed his tone Wednesday about his Colombian counterpart after a friendly phone call in which he invited Petro to visit the White House.

President Donald Trump waves as he walks off stage after speaking to House Republican lawmakers during their annual policy retreat, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)