Rhyne Howard leaves Kentucky fans with an unforgettable performance
Can Rhyne Howard Day be every day?
On Sunday, Kentucky Women’s Basketball celebrated Howard’s legendary career with a 90-62 victory over the Auburn Tigers. Howard is not the only senior for UK, but that being said, the other Kentucky three seniors are expected all to use their extra year of eligibility that came as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, Sunday was all about the 6-foot-2 superstar guard.
Record-breaking Rhyne Howard
The All-American didn’t disappoint, either. Howard dropped a season-high 32 points while shooting 11-20 from the field and 8-13 from beyond the arc. In the spectacular performance, Howard broke multiple records.
First off, Howard’s eight 3-pointers are the most in school history. Moreover, Howard hit six of her buckets from deep in a single half, another school record. There were multiple factors contributing to Howard’s seemingly superhuman shooting performance. For one, Howard believed her changing her jersey to No. 5 was significant.
Howard changed her number to honor her injured teammate Blair Green and the late Wildcat Terrence Clarke. She discussed the effect of the jersey swap after the game.
“I had [Green’s] powers, and she’s usually the one who shoots all the 3’s,” Howard said during the postgame press conference. “It meant a lot for both of us.”
Having fun with it
Howard was undoubtedly having fun on Sunday. With each bucket from deep, Howard would pull a new celebration out of her bag. The once shy Wildcat danced up and down the court after every 3-pointer.
Howard’s goofy energy was contagious. The final home game of the Kentucky superstar had fans sporting decorative crowns. The seemingly odd choice references the slogan “Crown her,” which has been a supporting cry from fans for years.
Howard enjoyed the inside joke.
“It was great seeing those crowns. ‘Crown her’ has been a thing for a couple of years now,” Howard said. “Everyone being a part of it was just great.”
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Howard’s Sunday motivation
There certainly was no shortage of crowns in the arena. With 5,268 people in attendance, Rhyne Howard Day had the biggest draw of any home game this season. Of course, Howard couldn’t let the fans down.
This fact doesn’t come as a surprise. Before the season, KSR had a chance to talk to Howard about her motivations.
“I don’t want to let anybody down. I hate letting my teammates down, my coaches down, the fans,” Howard said back in the summer. “We’re not trying to disappoint anybody.”
Howard’s inspiration came full circle on Sunday during her unforgettable performance. Kentucky’s second all-time leading scorer described the sensation of putting on a show in her final game at Memorial Coliseum.
“It was great to just look around, especially with how packed it was. Just to see a smile on everybody’s face,” Howard said. “It was just great.”
While Howard may not play in Memorial Coliseum again, she’ll unquestionably put many more smiles on Kentucky fans’ faces for years to come. The kid from Cleveland, TN will always be a Kentucky legend.
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