MEDLEY, Fla. — Rhyne Howard scored 30 points to lead the Vinyl past the Laces in the Unrivaled playoffs Saturday, while Paige Bueckers’ 29 points led the Breeze past the Rose to secure their berth in Monday night’s semifinals.
Veteran Dearica Hamby hit the winning shot against the third-seeded Laces in the opening game of the first round postseason play for the 3-on-3 women’s pro basketball league. Once they secured the 82-69 win, players from the sixth-seeded Vinyl — the last Unrivaled team to clinch a spot in the playoffs — jumped into Hamby’s arms in celebration.
Howard, a former Chattanooga-area prep standout at Bradley Central, helped the Vinyl reach the 2025 title matchup and scored a game-high 22 points, though her team came up short of the win.
Dominique Malonga had 17 rebounds to help the Breeze rout the Rose, last year’s champion in Unrivaled’s inaugural season, 69-50, and advance to the next round, which will be played at Barclays Center, the home of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets and the WNBA’s New York Liberty.
Earning automatic berths to the semis were the top-seeded Phantom (who face the Vinyl) and No. 2 Mist (who face the Breeze). The title game is set for Wednesday at Unrivaled’s home arena in Miami, with a prize pool of $600,000 to be split among players from the championship club.