Howard Adds Another Jewel to Her Impressive Crown

As her Kentucky career was coming to a close, Rhyne Howard had accomplished almost everything a player could in a four-year span. Howard was an All-American, SEC Player of the Year, had scored more than 2,000 points in her career and had become a legend in Kentucky basketball.

Only one thing was missing from Howard’s crown – a championship.

On Sunday in Nashville, Howard added that final jewel to her already formidable crown. The UK legend had 18 points as seventh-seeded Kentucky upset top-seeded, and top-ranked South Carolina 64-62 in the championship game of the Southeastern Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena.

Howard was named MVP of the tournament, which saw Kentucky roll through an amazing gauntlet to win the title. The Cats won four games in four days to win the SEC’s postseason title for the first time since 1982.

Kentucky’s run stared on Thursday with a win over Mississippi State. Howard had 14 points as the Cats won the only game in which they were favored this week.

In the quarterfinals, facing sixth-ranked LSU, Howard stepped up considerably, scoring 32 points as the Cats upset the Tigers 78-63.

Then, in Saturday’s semifinals, Howard had 24 points as Kentucky upset No. 18 Tennessee 83-74, getting the Cats to the title game for the first time in eight years.

In Sunday’s title game, Howard had 18 points and served as a decoy on the final play as Dre’una Edwards drilled a three from the top of the key as Kentucky upset the nation’s top-ranked team.

Howard will now lead her team to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season, although this trip to the Big Dance was not easy. The Cats were 9-11 this season after losing to South Carolina in February. Since then, UK has won 10 in a row and has looked like a different team. And, as would be expected, that has largely been because of Howard and due to a team meeting that happened earlier in the season. What happened in that meeting?

She will go down as not only one of the greatest basketball players in Kentucky history, but one of the greatest athletes to ever set foot on the UK campus. And by leading her team to the SEC title on Sunday, her crown is glistening even more than it was before.