Kentucky's Rhyne Howard went no. 1 overall in the 2022 WNBA Draft ... and after she was selected, she paid tribute to the late Terrence Clarke -- who she calls her "little brother."
The shooting guard walked the New York stage Monday night wearing a white pantsuit set with sparkles ... but what stood out most was her honorary pin for Clarke, a former Wildcats guard who died almost a year ago.
"That was like my little brother," Howard said about her tribute.
Clarke and Howard met on campus in 2020 ... when TC was a freshman and Howard was in her 2nd year. They both played for the Wildcats hoops teams.
“That was like my little brother.”
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 11, 2022
—Rhyne Howard speaks about her bond with Terrence Clarke pic.twitter.com/ytGhy4ceJm
"As soon as he stepped on campus, we instantly clicked and ever since then, we were inseparable."
"Just us coming in and me being able to help him and just get him through his college years."
Sadly, Clarke was tragically killed in a Los Angeles car crash on April 22, 2021 -- a few months before he was set to be drafted by an NBA team.
Rhyne is definitely making TC proud ... she averaged 20.1 points and 6.9 rebounds per game during her four seasons in Lexington, and became the highest player drafted in Kentucky women's basketball history.
RIP TC5!