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Rice Basketball: 2025-2026 Midseason State of the Program

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It’s been a mixed bag for Rice Basketball in their second season under head coach Rob Lanier. Here’s where the Owls stand as American Conference play begins.

Heading into late December, Rice basketball has completed non-conference play with a 6-7 record, with two wins over non-NCAA teams and some narrow misses against a handful of quality clubs away from home. The Owls have had their moments, but consistency remains a focal point as the calendar turns to January.

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Can they take the next step? That’s the crucial question facing this squad as they wrap up non-conference play. Here’s where the Owls stand at (roughly) the halfway point, a few important milestones and notes from the journey and a recalibration of expectations for the rest of the way.

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Shooting Can’t Keep Up as Rice Basketball Falls at Pepperdine

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Rice Basketball was outgunned by a red-hot Pepperdine offense, closing out nonconference play without a single road win.

Cam Carroll opened up the scoring but Rice basketball still found itself playing from behind for most of their contest against Pepperdine on Saturday evening. The Waves took the lead right back from the Owls and held a minor advantage through much of the first half, although there were three more lead changes before the break.

The early minutes of the second half proved to be the Owls’ undoing. Pepperdine opened the period on a 10-4 run, stretching their lead to 13 points and putting Rice on the defensive. It took some time, but the Owls started to find their shooting stroke as they attempted to keep pace with their sharpshooting hosts. Pepperdine shot 49 percent from the field, straining a Rice offense that couldn’t recover from a much slower start.

MORE: Rice Football Recruiting — 2025 Winter Transfer Portal Tracker

A 7-0 run just after the midpoint of the second quarter would briefly get Rice back within single digits, but Pepperdine rallied, keeping the margin right around 10 points for the next several minutes as the clock wound down. It was then that Pepperdine connected on five consecutive three-point attempts, effectively ending any hopes of a Rice comeback.

Rice Basketball falls to 6-7 with the loss. The Owls are 1-5 away from Tudor Fieldhouse this season.

Final Box | Pepperdine 84, Rice 62

Key takeaway | Road Woes

Had things gone differently in Fort Myers at Coconut Hoops, the Owls’ shockingly awful record away from Tudor Fieldhouse would be much easier to swallow. Yes, the quality of competition Rice has played on the road has been stout. Yes, many of those games have remained competitive, even going to overtime. Still, Rice has won one basketball game outside of the city of Houston in six tries.

The American Conference might not be chock full of sure-fire powerhouses as it has been in recent years, but the level of competition will still be rigorous. Half of those games are going to be played away from Tudor Fieldhouse. Plain and simple. Rice basketball has to find a way to win away from home.

Up Next: at Tulsa (Wed, Dec. 31 at 1:00 pm)

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Rice Basketball Cruises Past Southwestern Christian

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Rice Basketball blew the doors off Southwestern Christian in the Owls’ annual School House Mania game, swiftly dispatching the NAIA program at home.

Before a joyous crowd of young onlookers, Rice basketball delivered quite the show at Tudor Fieldhouse on Wednesday morning. The Owls’ annual School House Mania game began with a 7-0 run from the home team and quickly ballooned to a 20-5 advantage in just eight minutes of action.

The entire roster got into the mix with 10 players recording a field goal in the first half alone as the Rice advantage skyrocketed to as many as 25 points before the break. A flurry of threes from Southwestern Christian’s Cole Allen was the only thing keeping their team in the gym. But he wouldn’t connect on any triples after halftime as the game turned definitively in favor of Rice.

MORE: Rice Football Recruiting — 2025 Winter Transfer Portal Tracker

A 16-0 run in the middle portions of the ensuing period, followed by a subsequent 8-0 run, came just shy of a 50-point blowout in favor of the Owls. Rice would have to settle for a 47-point victory with five players scoring in double figures.

Rice Basketball improves to 6-6 with the win. The Owls are 5-2 at Tudor Fieldhouse this season.

Final Box | Rice 77, Southwestern Christian 76

What They’re Saying

“In a game like this, sometimes you’re trying to see if your team has the discipline and maturity to do the things that you practice every day. There were some obvious moments where that wasn’t the case, but overall, I think we competed. We were a little bit careless with the basketball. In a game like this, when you get a lead and it’s evident that you’re going to win the game, that’s not an excuse to not play the game a certain way. But I thought we settled back in. We shared the basketball and there was an emphasis on us doing a better job of playing with some force at the rim.” – Rice Basketball head coach Rob Lanier

Key takeaway | An Opportunity Awaits

There’s not too much to glean from a blowout win over a non-NCAA opponent other than breath a sign of relief that the game went as it was supposed to go. What the win did accomplish, however, was extending the Owls’ current winning streak to four games in a row. Should they beat Pepperdine on Saturday, Rice would finish out non-conference play 7-6. Do you remember how impossible that seemed after successive overtime losses at Coconut Hoops?

Pepperdine is No. 283 in KenPom, more than 70 spots below Rice basketball, which checks in currently at No. 210. It’s a winnable game and one the program would do well to win in order to ensure they can maintain the momentum they’ve built over the past few weeks.

Up Next: at Pepperdine (Sat, Dec. 20at 8:00 pm)

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Nick Anderson explodes late to lift Rice Basketball past Arkansas State

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Rice Basketball picked up another gut-check win on Saturday, rallying from a 16-point deficit in the second half to stun Arkansas State.

Beginning with a 6-0 run to open the game, Arkansas State controlled their contest with Rice basketball from the tip, maintaining a modest but slim advantage through most of the first half. The box score showed a relatively competitive game, but Rice led for just 29 seconds when the halftime buzzer sounded.

It looked as if the Owls had regrouped well when Trae Broadnax hit a layup to even the score right out of the break, but a thunderous 16-0 Arkansas State run put the home team in dire straights. Seven consecutive missed field goals contributed to that tilt and the game slowly began to work back into balance when the Owls started seeing those shots fall.

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Body Howell was the one who gave them the initial spark but it was Nick Anderson, who had been shut out entirely in the first half, who took over when Rice needed someone to seize the moment. Anderson scored 14 points, all in the final 5:01, turning a double-digit deficit — Rice led by as many as 16 points — into a stunning Rice lead.

Anderson’s final three-pointer put Rice in front by one. Cam Carroll knocked down a pair of free throws to put Rice in front by three. Then the Owls had to make one final defensive stand following a jump ball to secure the comeback win.

Rice Basketball improves to 5-6 with the win. The Owls are 4-2 at Tudor Fieldhouse this season.

Final Box | Rice 77, Arkansas State 76

What They’re Saying

“I’m really proud of the guys. It was a game where things weren’t going our way in the second half. We finished the first half strong. We started the second half tying the game and had a chance to take the lead, but we just couldn’t get stops. It didn’t look good. I told the guys before the year that I wanted us to go undefeated, in the sense that we don’t have a defeatist attitude. That when things aren’t going our way, we stay in the fight. Tonight, we learned that lesson, and I think it’s the best way to learn that lesson. Even though I wouldn’t have drawn it up like this. We’ve had our fair share of wins like this, and those are the most gratifying.” – Rice Basketball head coach Rob Lanier

Key takeaway | Next Man Up

Rice basketball knows it can count on Trae Broadnax and Jalen Smith in big moments. Nick Anderson has become part of that trusted veteran corps, too. But what separates teams that can win occasional games and teams that regularly win the tough ones is how impactful that next wave of players can be.

The Owls are thin on proven depth, but those up-and-coming players have already started to shine this season. Carroll has been stupendous, but a season-high 11-points from Body Howell and 10 more from Eternity Eguagie were massive in this one-point win. Rice basketball won’t have to count on them every night, but if one or two players like that can step up, they’re going to start winning more of these coin flip contests.

Up Next: vs Southwestern Christian (Wed, Dec. 17 at 11:15 am)

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Rice Basketball Survives “Test of Our Mettle” vs Texas State

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Rice Basketball earned a big lead and lost it, rallying late and holding on to secure a home win over Texas State.

Physicality was on full display when Rice basketball hosted Texas State on Wednesday evening. A tight contest in the early goings was turned into a sturdy halftime lead in favor of the Owls’ behind one of the more dominant rebounding efforts the program has seen in some time.

Texas State committed just five turnovers in the first half and shot a respectable 42 percent from the floor. And yet, they trailed by 12 points in large part because the Owls outrebounded the Bobcats 22-10 with a whopping 11 offensive boards leading to 16 second chance points.

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Then, it was as if the visitors flipped a switch. Texas State exploded out of the gates in the second half, nearly evening the rebounding battle in the next 10 minutes as they rallied to retake the lead in a 23-3 outburst. That Rice opened the half 2-for-9 from the field did them no favors.

Facing a six point deficit, Rice fought back. Trae Broadnax keyed the rally with several heads up defensive plays, putting the Owls back in front on a marvelous fadeaway followed by consecutive made free throws. Rice took a five-point lead into the final minute before Texas State cut it to one. Jalen Smith then made consecutive free throws to extend the edge to three before Nick Anderson iced things with a pair of foul shots of his own with 1.5 seconds remaining.

Rice Basketball improves to 4-6 with the win. The Owls are 3-2 at Tudor Fieldhouse this season.

Final Box | Rice 77, Texas State 72

What They’re Saying

Key takeaway | Learning on the Go

Following a week of consecutive gut punches, Rice basketball found a way to finish on Wednesday in a game that felt much more meaningful than just a singular win. But of course, it wouldn’t come easily.

That Rice saw a double-digit advantage wither in minutes in the second half and still found a way to rally spoke volumes about how far this team has come.

“I think those are the moments that kind of define teams a little bit,” guard Trae Broadnax said. “It was like a test of our mettle and our toughness.”

“I think coming off the week that we had last week where we went 1-2 but we felt like we took a step forward. We tried to put our best foot forward today in some spurts, for sure.”

ESPN win probability gave Rice more than a 90 percent chance of winning in this game on three separate occasions. Between them, Texas State mounted their rally. Afterward, Rice saw the late game lead dwindle to one point. The next step will be finding ways to maintain that consistent advantage and render the need for a furious comeback moot

“I feel like these experiences we’ve had over the last 10 games have not been lost on the guys,” Lanier said. “They’ve learned from it and I think tonight was an example of learning from previous games.”

Up Next: vs Arkansas State (Sat, Dec. 13 at 2:00 pm)

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