7’9″ center Olivier Rioux, the tallest college basketball player ever, announced on social media Thursday that he is transferring to UC Irvine.
The 20-year-old spent two seasons at Florida, where he redshirted the 2025 season and appeared in 11 games last season, albeit in very limited playing time. He averaged 0.6 points in just 1.5 minutes of action in those games.
Rioux announced in March that he was entering the transfer portal in search of more minutes. With key pieces Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh returning to the Gators next season, Rioux’s move makes sense as Florida has a frontcourt already locked in.
He’ll now join a UC Irvine squad that won the Big West regular season with a 23-12 record, but fell to Hawai’i in the conference tournament.
The Anteaters are no strangers massive players. 7’6″ center Mamadou N’diaye played three seasons for UC Irvine and was named Big West Defensive Player of the Year in 2014 and 2016.
Rioux now has the chance to create his own legacy with the program.
James Parker is a sports writer for Ball Exclusives, follow him on X @TheJames_Parker
