Led by Jalen Smith’s career day, Rice Basketball closed out their season with a Senior Day win over UTSA at home.
Senior Day marked the end of the 2026 Rice basketball season, the final chapter for several Owls who invested so much in the program through its highs and lows. Fortunately for those veterans, Sunday would be a high point amidst a challenging campaign.
Senior Andrew Akuchie started the scoring and senior Jalen Smith followed with a layup, just a portion of his career-best 25 points which led both teams in scoring. A series of threes from Smith and some scores from Stephen Giwa paved the way for a 21-3 run, driven home by a dagger three from Nick Anderson.
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Ahead by 18 in the early portions of the first half, the Owls just had to keep the visiting UTSA Roadrunners at bay for the remainder of the contest. Their opponents made a few runs, but never got back within single digits until a late three which came with time ticking off the clock and the game well in hand.
With the win, Rice Basketball improves to 13-18. The Owls went 8-8 at Tudor Fieldhouse this season.
Final Box | Rice 80, UTSA 71
What They’re Saying
“I’m just proud of the guys. You never how young people are going to approach not playing in the conference tournament. But the last couple of days leading up to today was phenomenal. I think it speaks to the group of seniors that we have that the rest of the guys wanted to win today for them. We weren’t very efficient as a team. I think we got a little caught up in the score. But in general, their hearts were in the right place. What I wanted to see was that we wanted to play, and we did. I thought that was the difference.” – Rice Basketball head coach Rob Lanier
Key takeaway | That’s All Folks
Any chance at playing in the conference tournament evaporated when Rice basketball was unable to hold a 17-point advantage against North Texas earlier in the week. That meant Sunday marked the end of the 2025-2026 season for the Owls, one that was decidedly underwhelming compared to the program’s own preseason aspirations.
Time for a further autopsy will come, but it’s safe to say this wasn’t the ascendant Year 2 head coach Rob Lanier was hoping for when the Owls took the court this past fall. The weight of the step backward belongs on the roster and the staff, with serious questions to be asked to ensure the future is brighter than the present. For now, a Senior Day win will serve as a hopeful memory to hold onto from a frustrating year.