Rhyne Howard's huge block on Breanna Stewart highlights postseason exit

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Rhyne Howard (left) blocks Breanna Stewart - Wendell Cruz, Imagn Images

For the second straight season, Rhyne Howard and the Atlanta Dream have been bounced from the first round of the WNBA Playoffs. But not before Howard produced one of the best highlight plays of the entire day.

On Tuesday night in New York City, the New York Liberty took down the Dream 91-82 to win the series 2-0. Howard finished with 19 points (8-15 FG), five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks while playing all 40 minutes in the season-ending loss. Her impressive fastbreak block in the third quarter on two-time MVP Breanna Stewart was the highlight of the entire night, especially with Atlanta still leading at the time. Howard then scored the next five points as Atlanta took an eight-point lead.

Obviously, the fun didn’t last the rest of the night, but Howard’s rejection wound up at No. 5 on SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays from Tuesday. Watch the former Kentucky star swat Stewart into confusion below.

RHYNE HOWARD DENIES BREANNA STEWART 😳 pic.twitter.com/tOLyb7tlZ8
— ESPN (@espn) September 25, 2024

As mentioned, this is the second year in a row that Howard and the Dream have been bounced early from the postseason. Granted, Atlanta entered as the 8-seed and was always going to be the underdog against the top-seeded Liberty. Howard also missed significant time during the season due to an ankle injury. The Dream even had to beat this same Liberty team in the final game of the regular season just to make the Playoffs.

In the end, Atlanta finished with a 15-25 overall record in the 2024 season. With that in mind, during the nine games that Howard missed due to injury, the Dream posted a 1-8 record. The two-time All-Star stirs the drink for this team and her injury pulled out the straw. She still posted impressive numbers though: 17.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.8 steals in 33.9 minutes per game.

With year three in the books, the 24-year-old Howard still has her best basketball ahead of her. Hopefully, the Dream upgrade the talent around her in the offseason to help get her other sooner rather than later.