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The Roost Podcast | Ep 142 – Rice Football Spring Practice and Basketball Recruiting

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Rice Football spring practices are in the books, but first we need to talk some basketball recruiting. It’s been a busy week for the offseason on both fronts.

It’s time to voice our final approvals and concerns following the conclusion of Rice football spring practices, including an initial review of the first outings of JT Daniels as the Owls’ QB1. But it’s not just football in the news right now. A string of recruiting success on the hardwood put Rice basketball into the spotlight in mid-April for a very good reason.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 142.

Episode Notes

Housekeeping

The Roost Podcast is now part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You’ll still get the same content with the same hosts you’ve grown to love (or at least tolerate), but now with new partners.

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Rice Basketball Recruiting heats up

  • Rice has a higher rated recruiting class than … Texas
  • Three new additions from the transfer portal should inject plenty of talent
  • 2023-2024 roster looks really, really intriguing

Rice Football Spring Ball final thoughts 

  • JT Daniels as good as advertised
  • Dean Connors and Juma Otoviano show out
  • The new coaches are posting encouraging early returns
  • The offensive line is a work-in-progress, but there’s some reasons that’s the case
  • How worried should we be about the run defense?
  • Who is going to step up behind Gabe Taylor at safety and when will we find out?

Where can you find us?

The Roost Podcast is part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You can find this podcast and all of our partner podcasts on Apple, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Rice Basketball Recruiting: Gardner-Webb transfer Anthony Selden commits to Owls

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The run of Rice basketball recruiting wins in the transfer portal marches on. Gardner-Webb transfer Anthony Selden has committed to the Owls.

On his visit to campus last weekend, Gardner-Webb transfer Anthony Selden felt right at home. A few days later he formalized those feelings into a commitment, becoming part of the newest wave of Rice basketball recruiting successes in the Transfer Portal.

Rice was new to Selden, but there was at least one familiar face, Travis Evee, who played alongside Selden growing up and competed with him in their prep school days. Selden told The Roost that connection played a part in his final decision, but made it clear he’d fallen in love with the program during his recruitment. “The culture of the staff and the players was outstanding and made the decision easy for me,” he said.

Selden marks the third prominent addition to the newest Rice basketball recruiting class from the Transfer Portal in the last several days. Cal transfer forward Sam Alajiki was the first to make his pledge and was soon followed by an announcement from former Vanderbilt guard Noah Shelby. Selden rounds out a robust haul of veteran additions to an already strong core led by Max Fiedler and the aforementioned Evee.

On the court, Selden’s ability to attack from the wing will make Rice better. He can score from multiple levels and isn’t afraid to get vertical and make plays. Having another proven scorer in the fold is always a good thing and he’s already turned in his fair share of highlights, too.

The aspect of his game he’s the most proud of though? It’s the other side of the ball. Selden said he was most proud of his defense. “I feel like that sets me apart from most players because I want to guard the best player day in and day out,” Selden said. At the end of the day, that might end up being the most welcomed aspect of his addition to the Owls ranks.

 

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Rice Basketball Recruiting: Vanderbilt transfer Noah Shelby commits to Owls

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The transfer portal continues to be kind to Rice Basketball. Vanderbilt transfer Noah Shelby has committed to the Owls.

It’s been an extremely productive week for Rice basketball recruiting. Days removed from landing a commitment from Cal transfer forward Sam Alajiki, the Owls have beefed up their guard play with an SEC addition. Former Vanderbilt guard Noah Shelby has committed to the Owls.

A 2022 McDonald’s All-American Game Nominee, Shelby is a former 4-star recruit in the 2022 class and the No. 121 player in the country. He spent last season with Commodores coming off the bench but shot 31.1 percent from three and tied a career-best 12 points against Tennessee in January.

A Texas native, Shelby made the decision to enter the portal this offseason and Rice was the first program to come calling. Shelby would eventually end up choosing the Owls over several other Power 5 programs. “I made Rice a priority because they made me a priority,” Shelby told The Roost.

As for skills on the court, Shelby fills an immediate need for Rice basketball, who lost guard Quincy Olivari to the Transfer Portal this offseason. Shelby is a ball handler and a shooter, part of what naturally drew him and the Owls together. Pairing his willingness to shoot with the Owls’ Green Light U mantra makes a lot of sense.

Shelby will be part of the Owls’ inaugural AAC squad, something he says he looks forward to. As for what he brings to Rice, Shelby was emphatic and direct. “I’m committed to winning and I am going to produce on the court,” he said. If he can make shots in bunches like this, he’ll fit right in.

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Rice Basketball Recruiting: Cal transfer Sam Alajiki commits to Owls

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The first Rice Basketball recruiting boost of the offseason has appeared. Cal transfer Sam Alajiki has committed to the Owls.

The end of the season brought notices of departure on the Rice basketball recruiting front as the Owls staff worked to find the proper replacements. Rice had already made a splash with the commitments of Keanu Dawes and Gabe Warren but a seasoned addition from the Transfer Portal was certainly expected. News of the first such new arrival has been announced in the form of Cal transfer Sam Alajiki.

Alajiki is a former Pac-12 All-Freshman team selection who made his mark with the Golden Bears quickly upon arrival, tying Cal’s program record for three point percentage in a season (50 percent on 20-of-40 attempts) in his freshman campaign.

As a sophomore, Alajiki averaged 6.1 points per game leading the Bears in three-point shooting (35.9 percent). Things began to pick up for him down the stretch with Alajiki making starts in 10 of the final 11 games, including four double-digit performances in the final nine contests.

Standing 6-foot-7, Alajiki brings size along with his shooting to South Main, as well as additional experience on the international game. Alajiki is originally from Dundalk, Ireland and averaged 13 points and six rebounds for the Irish national team in the 2022 U-20 FIBA European Championships.

Alajiki should be a valuable asset for the Owls, who are expected to return four of five starters as they make the move to the AAC next season.

Rice basketball fans will hopefully being seeing a lot of this from Alajiki when he arrives at South Main

 

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Rice Women’s Basketball: 2023 Post-Season State of the Program

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The 2022-2023 Rice women’s basketball season was filled with highs and lows. Where does the program stand as it enters the offseason?

A fast start followed by a rough beginning to conference play set the stage for an eventful 2022-2023 Rice Women’s Basketball season. Head coach Lindsay Edmonds worked through roster limitations and injuries to take her team to the WNIT and delivered her first postseason conference tournament win of her coaching career.

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The Owls finished 23-9 (13-7) this season, a sizable step up from a 14-13 (8-9) campaign the season prior. Now that the dust has settled, where does the program stand as it moves forward?

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