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Rice Basketball Preseason Conference Polls Released

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Preseason polls for both the Rice Basketball men’s and women’s teams were released on Friday with very different projections for the Owls’ two squads.

Rice Men’s Basketball was picked to finish 13th in the AAC in their first year under head coach Rob Lanier. Rice women’s basketball were tabbed to finish second in a tie with North Texas following a Conference Championship Title and NCAA appearance by head coach Lindsay Edmonds. Senior forward Malia Fisher was named a first-team all conference selection.

Both polls and all-conference selections are as follows:

2024-25 American Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Preseason Poll and Honors

1. South Florida (8) 135
2. North Texas (3) 124
Rice (2) 124
4. Tulsa 98
5. UTSA 96
6. East Carolina 91
7. Memphis 84
8. Temple 78
9. UAB 55
10. Tulane 40
11. Charlotte 38
12. Wichita State 32
13. Florida Atlantic 19

Preseason Players of the Year

Tommisha Lampkin, Gr., F, North Texas

Romi Levy, R-Sr., F, South Florida

Preseason All-Conference First Team

Tommisha Lampkin, Gr., F, North Texas

Malia Fisher, Sr., F, Rice

Romi Levy, R-Sr., F, South Florida

Jordyn Jenkins, R-Sr., F, UTSA

Delanie Crawford, Sr., G, Tulsa

Preseason All-Conference Second Team

Amiya Joyner, Jr., F, East Carolina

Vittoria Blasigh, So., G, South Florida

Mama Dembele, Gr., G, South Florida

Tiarra East, Sr., G, Temple

Kyren Whittington, R-Sr., G, Tulane

2024-25 American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Preseason Poll and Honors

1. UAB (9) 141
2. Memphis (4) 136
3. South Florida 108
4. Wichita State 102
5. Florida Atlantic 97
6. Temple 86
7. North Texas 83
8. Charlotte 65
9. East Carolina 63
10. Tulsa 44
11. UTSA 35
Tulane 35
13. Rice 18

Preseason Player of the Year

Yaxel Lendeborg, Sr., F, UAB

Preseason Freshman of the Year

Jared Harris, G, Memphis

Preseason All-Conference First Team

Yaxel Lendeborg, Sr., F, UAB*

RJ Felton, Sr., G, East Carolina

PJ Haggerty, R-So., G, Memphis

Tyrese Hunter, Sr., G, Memphis

Jamal Mashburn Jr., Gr., G, Temple

Preseason All-Conference Second Team

Efrem ‘Butta’ Johnson, Jr., G, UAB

Alejandro Vasquez, Sr., G, UAB

KyKy Tandy, Gr., G, Florida Atlantic

Colby Rogers, R-Sr., G, Memphis

Jayden Reid, So., G, South Florida

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Rice Soccer, Basketball and more bring good news: September 2024 Q&A

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The 2024 Rice Football season has taken a turn for the worse, but Rice Soccer, basketball and more offer hope for the future. We look at both in this month’s subscriber Q&A.

Understandably, good news was the order of the day after things went south with Rice Football. Fortunately, it’s been a very active fall sports season with highlights from Rice Soccer’s tremendous start to accolades for Genny Volpe and expectations for sports yet to start like Swimming and Basketball. This update focuses on the good news from those sports. We’ll dig into the football woes elsewhere.

Questions were edited briefly for clarity. Want to get your questions answered? Subscribe on Patreon for our monthly mailbag.

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

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Q: I’ve given up on football. Give me some good news on the Rice Athletics front. What else is there to look forward to this year?

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Rice Basketball Recruiting: F Evan Cochran commits to Owls

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Rice basketball has its third commitment of the 2025 recruiting class. Forward Evan Cochran from Houston has committed to the Owls.

Tuesday was a good day to be an Owl. The 2025 Rice Basketball recruiting class tripled in size, building on an initial pledge from guard Cameron Carroll from South Grand Prairie the Owls added a pair of new commitments, including a big one from forward Evan Cochran from The Village School right here in Houston, Texas.

Cochran picked Rice over a growing list of interested suitors. He had offers from Wichita State, Nevada, George Mason, Marshall, UTSA and others before deciding he wouldn’t be going very far from home at all to play his college ball.

“I really felt like the academic part of Rice was a fit for me, as well as the great coaching staff, the community, the campus, and more,” Cochran told The Roost. “I love the style of play Coach Lanier likes to play with, as it fits how I play the game as a player. I was impressed with the connection the coaches had with each other as well as with the players.”

Standing 6-foot-8, Cochran brings some size and physicality to a class that started with shooters. That’s something he says values highly and hopes to bring with him to campus.

“I take a lot of pride in rebounding and defense, which is especially something I improved on a lot over the summer,” he said. “Playing on the PRO16 circuit allowed me to compete with the best big men in the country and hold my own against them with defense and rebounding.

Cochran comes on board the same day as guard Boden Howell. Along with the aforementioned Carroll, the 2025 class now sits at three members, all from the high school ranks.

More: Rice Basketball 2024 Roster Tracker

It’s one thing to be big, lots of athletes have that going for them. It’s another to be able to use that size to your advantage which is something that sticks out when you turn on Cochran’s film. He looks comfortable on the court and is aware of how to position himself for maximum impact as both a shooter and a rebounder, a strong foundation as he grows into the collegiate player head coach Rob Lanier and staff believe he will be.

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Rice Basketball Recruiting: G Boden Howell commits to Owls

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Rice basketball has its second commitment of the 2025 recruiting class. Guard Boden Howell has committed to the Owls.

After a flurry of portal additions to ready the 2024-2025 roster, Rice Basketball has turned its attention to the future and the high school recruiting front. Roughly a week removed from the commitment of guard Cameron Carroll from South Grand Prairie the Owls have added a pair of new commitments, the first from guard Boden Howell of Meridian, Idaho.

Howell is a 6-foot-4 shooting guard who picked up an offer from the University of South Dakota the same week as he received his Rice basketball offer in late July. Active in the AAU circuit, Howell got onto the Rice radar and stayed there. Howell averaged 20.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.5 assists as a junior last season, leading his team to a state championship where he earned All-State Tournament honors.

Howell comes on board the same day as forward Evan Cochran from The Village School in Houston. Along with the aforementioned Carroll, the 2025 class now sits at three members, all from the high school ranks.

More: Rice Basketball 2024 Roster Tracker

The highlights have everything you want to see from a guard of Howell’s size, particularly the athleticism and how well he moves on the court. He can score off the dribble and on the drive, facilitates well to his teammates and is an experienced marksman from the outside. He’s a versatile player who plays the game with a high IQ and shoot fit in well with how coach Rob Lanier and company want to operate on the court.

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Rice Basketball Recruiting: G Cameron Carroll commits to Owls

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Rice basketball has landed its first commitment of the 2025 recruiting class. South Grand Prairie guard Cameron Carroll has committed to the Owls.

When head coach Rob Lanier took the helm of the Rice basketball program his first task was restocking a barren roster. With the 2024-2025 team more or less intact, the Owls were able to turn their attention toward the future, scouting out the right fits for the 2025 class. They landed their first member of that new flock on Wednesday. South Grand Prairie Guard Cameron Carroll has committed to the Owls.

Carroll’s first offer came early from Mississippi State. That set into motion a flurry of interest, eventually reaching the point where Lanier’s staff made the decision to offer Carroll at SMU. From there, Carroll’s stock steadily rose throughout the summer. When Lanier moved to Rice, the Owls swooped in with an offer, kicking off interest from Sam Houston, SFA, New Mexico State and Oral Roberts, among others.

The interest exists for good reason. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound point guard has a diverse array of skills that piqued the interest of so many programs. For Lanier and company to land someone of this caliber bodes well for the future of this 2025 Rice Basketball recruiting class.

More: Rice Basketball 2024 Roster Tracker

The film backs up all of those encouraging tidbits. Carroll can score from all three levels, shooting the ball well from the outside while still being quick enough and strong enough to slash into the paint and take it to the rim. He’s a scorer with good ball skills. The vision on the court is encouraging, too. Being able to facilitate the offense is just as important as scoring itself. Carroll looks to excel in both spots. This appears to be a great building block for the Owls’ future.

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