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Rice Basketball: 2024-2025 Midseason State of the Program

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It’s been an encouraging start for Rice Basketball in their first season under head coach Rob Lanier. Here’s where the Owls stand as American Conference play begins.

Already 2-0 in league play, Rice basketball is riding high in their first season under the leadership of head coach Rob Lanier. The Owls have played largely competitive basketball games and gotten off to a strong start under their new head man.

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Can they keep it up? That’s the crucial question facing this squad as they pass the midpoint of the season. Here’s where the Owls stand at the halfway point, a few important milestones and notes from the journey to this point and a recalibration of expectations for the rest of the way.

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Rice Basketball comes up short against Florida State

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Rice Basketball kept things close but couldn’t get enough shots to fall late, picking up their first loss of the season against Florida State.

Florida State came out swinging and immediately put Rice basketball on the defensive at the Toyota Center on Saturday night, shooting a blistering 76 percent from the field in the first 10 minutes and forcing the Owls to match their torrid pace.

A 7-0 run from the Noles was the Owls’ first test. Rather than rely on any one player, Rice saw contributions up and down the lineup to keep the game within reach. On this occasion, it was Jacob Dar and Trey Patterson who came through with the key layups to get back within four. That was the point when both sides seemed to settle down and the Rice defense was able to set its defense and play the style of game they wanted to play.

Florida State saw their shooting percentage drop from the high 70s to the 40s and their fouls tick upward. After hitting 10 of their first 13 field goals, the Noles missed their next eight shots. A simultaneous shooting slump from the Owls squashed any chance of a rally, but the defensive effort kept Rice afloat until Florida State snapped out of their stupor, a moment which unfortunately came before the Rice offense had recharged.

Rice was held to one field goal in the final eight minutes of the first half, allowing Florida State to go on a 9-3 run and extend their lead to 10 points at the break.

More: Rice Basketball 2024-2025 Season Preview

Alem Huseinovic and Trae Broadnax kicked the team into gear in the second half, knocking down a trio of three-pointers, almost instantaneously evaporating the Florida State lead which shrank to 33-32 in roughly two minutes of play.

Both teams traded baskets and fouls late into the second half, but that crucial spurt of three-point success proved to be the exception, not the rule. Rice would miss 11 of their next 12 three-pointers, slowly watching a close game fade away with each successive clank off the iron. 12 missed free throws didn’t help the cause, either. The box score shows a comfortable Florida State win, but Rice had a real chance to make this one interesting.

“From an overall team connectivity standpoint, we have something good there,” guard Trae Broadnax said postgame. “That’s where we’re close and we just have to lock in on the things that plagued us like the free throws, like the turnovers, like the execution on both ends of the floor so that we can put it together. It’s November. We’ve still got a long ways to go.”

Final Box | FSU 73, Rice 65

What They’re Saying

Key takeaway | Free Throw Woes

There’s been a lot of good to take from the Rob Lanier era of Rice basketball through two games and a 1-1 start. The defensive effort is improved and the effort has been impressive on both ends of the court. The most glaring deficiency that cost the Owls in both games so far? Free throws.

Rice missed 15 free throws against FIU and missed 12 free throws against Florida State. Shooting 100 percent from the charity stripe is unrealistic and even making every foul shot wouldn’t have saved the Owls on Saturday night, but this game takes on a different feel if they make them at a more realistic clip. That change might not be coming soon.

“Today was my 1,091st game coaching division one [basketball] and I’ve never worked with — and I worked with two hall of fame coaches — or been a great free throw coach. Billy Donovan was not a good free throw coach. Rick Barnes was not a good free throw coach and neither am I,” Lanier admitted.

Lanier’s final SMU squad made just 68.6 percent of their free throws last season. The 2024-2025 Owls are sitting at 60.8 percent through two games. Neither of those numbers is going to be better than the bottom quartile of the country.

Lanier acknowledged the challenge but kept a positive spin on things. “Witchcraft. Pixie dust. Burn some sage in the gym,” he joked. “We’ll try some different stuff.”

Rice basketball might never be an elite free throw shooting team. But getting the Owls back to the middle of the back would go a long way.

Up Next: vs Louisiana Monroe (Tues)



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2024-2025 Rice Basketball Season Preview

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Rice Basketball embarks on a new era under head coach Rob Lanier this season. What will the new-look Owls be able to offer in his debut season on South Main?

Emotions are always high when you hire a new coach. A new day dawns and all the prior struggles and frustrations are momentarily thrust back into the depths. But the games will eventually start again and the neverending cycle of hope and tragedy that plagues all sports will soon return. New Rice basketball head coach Rob Lanier is responsible for ensuring those woes are shortlived and the Owl faithful see a product on the court that makes them proud.

Lanier didn’t shy away from those obligations when he first addressed Rice fans the day he was hired. “We’re gonna win. It ain’t a hope. It ain’t a dream. It’s a reality. So you can get prepared for that,” he said at the podium that afternoon. In a short time, those words will be put to the test.

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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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Rice Basketball Recruiting: G Trae Broadnax commits to Owls

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Another talented guard is headed to South Main. The 2024 Rice Basketball recruiting class has landed a commitment from Trae Broadnax, formerly of UC Upstate.

The wave of Rice basketball recruiting wins isn’t slowing down any time in the near future. No sooner had the Transfer Portal opened than Rice added a couple of commitments. Now their third veteran addition has joined the fold. UC Upstate guard Trae Broadnax has committed to the Owls.

Broadnax was a two-year starter for UC Upstate where he averaged 12.6 points per game across those seasons, tacking up 3.3 assists and 4.3 rebounds to go along with the points. Broadnax stepped in and became a key piece of the Spartan’s roster immediately after beginning his basketball career with one season at the Naval Academy.

Powell joins fell commits Emory Lanier, Kellen Amos, Trey Patterson and Aaron Powell.

On the court, Broadnax should be a lot of fun when he gets to South Main. He’s aggressive to the rim and quick to put his foot on the deck and explode to the basket. It’s not just inside, though, Broadnax can score from all three levels and profiles as an effective three-point shooter, particularly when given the ball to catch and shoot — something his highlights showcase particularly effectively.

More: Rice Basketball Roster Tracker

He’ll fit in well at Rice with coach Lanier. Surrounding Broadnax with a great cast of players around him will only amplify his skillset. You can never have enough scorers, and Broadnax certainly fits that bill.



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Rice Basketball 2024 Roster Tracker

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The Rice basketball roster is in the midst of complete retooling with the coaching staff changes. Stay tuned here for updates.

Roster churn has become a part of college sports as we know and Rice basketball is not immune to the ebb and flow of players coming in and out. With the 2023-2024 season in the books, this page will serve as a running tracker regarding the roster for the upcoming season as it currently stands. The last official roster is available here.

More: What is Rice basketball getting in coach Rob Lanier?

Feel free to bookmark it and refer back to it from time to time as players announce their intentions throughout the offseason.

Coaching Changes

Rob Lanier was formally introduced as the next head coach for Rice Basketball on March 26. A week later he has named three men to his coaching staff, all of whom are following Lanier from his staff at SMU: Chris Kreider, Josten Crow and Andre Owens.

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