Rhyne Howard, Dream, again matches the WNBA brand with 9 triples
Rhyne Howard led 13 of 26 field shots, including 9 of 17 triples. His other match with nine triples was on June 13, in the 88-70 victory over Chicago. Both games were in Atlanta.
The base of Atlanta Dream, Rhyne Howardthe WNBA record matched in a single game with nine triples on Friday, becoming the first player in the history of the league to achieve it more than once.
Howard ended with 37 points and Dream beat Los Angeles Sparks By 104-85, thus guaranteeing the advantage of the local in Atlanta in the first round of the playoffs. Howard led 13 of 26 field shots, including 9 of 17 triples. His other match with nine triples was on June 13, in the 88-70 victory over Chicago. Both games were in Atlanta.
There have been six games, including the playoffs and the Copa del Commissioner final, in which a WNBA player has led nine triples.
“I think it forces people to put me in that conversation with the best shooters,” said Howard, who is in his fourth season at age 25. “Because it is something that cannot be set aside. No one had done it until I got here.”
Howard, the first selection of the draft and rookie of the year from Kentucky in 2022, also praised Karl Smesko, first -year coach of the Dream. His offensive system, which was successful for many years in Florida Gulf Coast, has adapted well to his first season at the WNBA.
The Dream scored 19 triples on Friday, matching the New York Liberty record in the regular season. Las Vegas Aces scored 23 triples in a playoff match in 2022.
“As for the system, I knew it was going to be great for me,” Howard said about Smesko. “Everyone said: ‘He likes triples and trays.'” Everyone knows that I like triples. I am going to get them, but the most important thing is that I can still have them with regularity.
Howard has 97 triples despite getting 11 games for injury this season. This includes a streak of 10 consecutive regular season games and the WNBA stars game due to a knee injury between July and August. He returned to action on August 10.
“It was a really extraordinary game of Rhy,” Smesko said about his performance on Friday. “It shows that he feels very comfortable with his launch, and is being aggressive, looking for good shots. When he really takes rhythm, he can have incredible gusts like today.”
Allisha Gray’s Allisha Gray’s Allisar base, which has 93 triples this season, the last two games have been lost due to a knee injury. But that has not stopped Atlanta, who has won six of his last seven games.
With a 2-14 record, the Dream continue in the contest for second place, behind Minnesota, which already has the first place insured. Las Vegas and Phoenix have a record of 27-14.
The Dream will play their first postseason game at home since September 4, 2018, when they lost the fifth party of the semifinals against Washington. Atlanta did not classify the playoffs in the 2019-22 season, and then lost 2-0 in the First Round series against Dallas in 2023 and against New York last year. This season, the WNBA adopts a 1-1-1 format for the first round, so all teams in the playoffs will have at least one game at home.
