UC Irvine center Olivier Rioux, listed at 7 feet 9 inches, made his debut for the Anteaters on Tuesday in a 92-66 victory over Chapman University (Division III). The transfer from Florida became the tallest player in NCAA Division I history to start a game, finishing with 13 points, 12 rebounds, and one block in 18 minutes.
Rioux shot 6-of-9 from the field. His first basket came less than two minutes into the game on a post layup, and he later added a one-handed dunk that required almost no jump thanks to his standing reach. The performance more than doubled his total career minutes; he had played only 17 minutes across two seasons at Florida, where he was part of the 2025 national championship team but remained behind a deep frontcourt.
Guinness World Records recognized Rioux as the tallest teenager in the world at 7-foot-5 in 2021. Last season he became the tallest college basketball player ever to appear in a game when he checked in against North Florida. At UC Irvine, he is expected to see a significantly larger role.
