Kiki Rice

Kira Carroll "Kiki" Rice (born January 14, 2004) is an American college basketball player for the UCLA Bruins of the Pac-12 Conference. She played for Sidwell Friends School at the high school level, where she was one of the top recruits in her class and earned national player of the year honors as a senior.

Kiki Rice

Rice with UCLA in 2022
No. 1 – UCLA Bruins
Position	Point guard
League	Pac-12 Conference
Personal information
Born	(2004-01-14) January 14, 2004 (age 20) San Francisco, California, U.S.
Listed height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Career information
High school	Sidwell Friends (Washington, D.C.)
College	UCLA (2022–present)
Career highlights and awards
All-Pac-12 Team (2024) Pac-12 All-Freshman Team (2023) Gatorade National Player of the Year (2022) Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year (2022) Naismith Prep Player of the Year (2022) McDonald's All-American Game Co-MVP (2022) FIBA Under-18 Americas Championship MVP (2022)
Medals Women's basketball Representing the  United States FIBA Under-19 World Cup 2023 Spain Team FIBA Under-18 Americas Championship 2022 Argentina Team FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship 2019 Chile Team Women's 3x3 basketball Representing the  United States FIBA 3x3 Under-18 World Cup 2021 Hungary Team

High school career

Rice played basketball for Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C. As a freshman, she averaged 19.2 points, 9.4 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game,^[1] leading her team to the semifinals of the state tournament.^[2] In her sophomore season, Rice averaged 26.8 points, 10.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2.3 steals per game, helping her team reach the District of Columbia State Athletic Association (DCSAA) Class AA title game.^[3] She was named D.C. Gatorade Player of the Year and DMV Student-Athlete of the Year by NBC Sports Washington.^[4] Rice did not play in her junior year after the Independent School League (ISL) canceled winter sports activities amid the COVID-19 pandemic.^[5] In her senior season, she led Sidwell Friends to a 28–0 record and the No. 1 national ranking by ESPN and MaxPreps, averaging 15.8 points, seven rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.6 steals per game.^[6] Her team won the ISL tournament and its first DCSAA Class AA title.^[7] Rice earned Gatorade Athlete of the Year,^[8] Gatorade National Player of the Year, Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year and Naismith Prep Player of the Year honors.^[9] She played in the McDonald's All-American Game, where she shared the MVP award with Gabriela Jaquez.^[10]

In addition to basketball, Rice played soccer for Sidwell Friends School at the forward and midfielder positions.^[11] In her freshman season, she led the team to ISL and DCSAA tournament titles. Rice was named D.C. Gatorade Player of the Year and DCSAA Player of the Year after recording 42 goals and 12 assists.^[12] As a senior, Rice repeated as D.C. Gatorade Player of the Year, helping Sidwell Friends win the DCSAA tournament, and recorded 15 goals and nine assists.^[13] She was named MaxPreps Athlete of the Year for her performance in basketball and soccer.^[14]

Recruiting

Rice was considered a five-star recruit, the second-best player and the top point guard in the 2022 class by ESPN. On November 4, 2021, she committed to playing college basketball for UCLA over offers from UConn, Stanford, Arizona and Duke. Rice became the highest-ranked recruit in program history. She was drawn to UCLA by the opportunity to help lead a team to its first Final Four and national championship.^[15]

College career

On November 7, 2022, Rice made her debut for UCLA, recording 12 points and seven assists in an 84–48 win over Cal Poly.^[16] On March 3, 2023, she scored a season-high 22 points in a 69–65 upset win over Stanford at the Pac-12 tournament semifinals.^[17] As a freshman, Rice averaged 11.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3 assists per game, making the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team.^[18] On November 24, she recorded 24 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in a 78–67 win over AP No. 6 UConn at the Cayman Islands Classic.^[19] Rice posted her first triple-double on December 7, with 14 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and seven steals in a 111–48 victory over Cal State Northridge.^[20]

National team career

Rice helped the United States under-16 national team win a gold medal at the 2019 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship in Chile, where she averaged 7.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.^[21] She led the United States under-18 national team to a gold medal at the 2022 FIBA Under-18 Americas Championship in Argentina. Rice earned tournament MVP honors after averaging 14.3 points, four rebounds and four assists per game.^[22] At the 2023 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Spain, she averaged 10 points, 5 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game en route to a gold medal.^[23]

In 3x3 basketball, Rice won a gold medal with the United States at the FIBA 3x3 Under-18 World Cup in Hungary.^[9]

Career statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game	RPG	Rebounds per game
APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game	BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game
TO	Turnovers per game	FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
Bold	Career best	°	League leader

College

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
2022–23	UCLA	37	36	28.1	41.1	21.7	79.1	4.5	3.0	1.2	0.5	1.6	11.6
2023–24	UCLA	34	34	31.2	44.9	31.2	87.6	5.7	4.5	1.4	0.5	2.5	13.2
Career		71	70	29.6	43.0	27.5	82.8	5.1	3.7	1.3	0.5	2.1	12.4
Statistics retrieved from Sports-Reference.^[24]

Off the court

Personal life

Rice's father, John, and brother, Teo, have both played college basketball for Yale. Her mother, Andrea, was a member of the tennis team at the same college. Rice's aunt is diplomat Susan Rice, and she is a cousin of former NBA player Allan Houston.^[15]

On October 31, 2022, Rice became the first athlete to sign a name, image and likeness deal with Jordan Brand.^[25]

In popular culture

In March 2024, ESPN+ announced their new original docuseries, Full Court Press will premiere in May 2024.^[26] The series (from Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions and Words & Pictures) will follow Rice, South Carolina's Kamilla Cardoso, and Iowa's Caitlin Clark throughout their 2023–24 season and post-season.^[26][27]

References

1. "2018-19 ALL-USA District of Columbia Girls Basketball Team". USA Today High School Sports. April 17, 2019. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
2. Whitaker, Grace (June 4, 2022). "No. 2 recruit Kiki Rice brings winning pedigree to UCLA women's basketball". Daily Bruin. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
3. "Sidwell Friends School Student-Athlete Named Gatorade District of Columbia Girls Basketball Player of the Year" (PDF). Gatorade. March 6, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
4. "All-DMV Basketball Team: Kiki Rice is the student-athlete of the year". NBC Sports Washington. March 25, 2020. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
5. Errigo, Michael (January 14, 2021). "Some private school basketball programs are testing the limits of murky pandemic restrictions". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
6. Huybers, Johanna (March 28, 2022). "Kiki Rice, No. 2-ranked 2022 girls basketball recruit, adding firepower to Pac-12". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
7. Melnick, Kyle (March 17, 2022). "Sidwell Friends' Kiki Rice is named Gatorade national player of the year". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
8. Moon, Francis (July 20, 2022). "Women's basketball's Kiki Rice earns Gatorade high school athlete of year award". Daily Bruin. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
9. Drumwright, Steve (June 15, 2022). . USA Basketball. Red Line Editorial. Archived from the original on June 18, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
10. "UCLA recruits Kiki Rice, Gabriela Jaquez share MVP honors at McDonald's All American Game". ESPN. Associated Press. March 29, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
11. "Sidwell Friends School Student-Athlete Named Gatorade District of Columbia Girls Soccer Player of the Year" (PDF). Gatorade. June 23, 2022. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
12. "Sidwell Friends School Student-Athlete Named Gatorade District of Columbia Girls Soccer Player of the Year" (PDF). Gatorade. June 13, 2019. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
13. "Sidwell Friends School Student-Athlete Named Gatorade District of Columbia Girls Soccer Player of the Year" (PDF). Gatorade. June 23, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
14. Stephens, Mitch (June 7, 2022). "Kiki Rice named 2021-22 MaxPreps National Female High School Athlete of the Year". MaxPreps. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
15. Givony, Jonathan (November 4, 2021). "Kiki Rice, No. 2 women's prospect in ESPN's class of 2022, commits to UCLA". ESPN. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
16. Nguyen, Thuc Nhi (November 7, 2022). "Kiki Rice shines in collegiate debut as UCLA defeats Cal Poly". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
17. Carlson, Gavin (March 3, 2023). "16-point comeback over Stanford grants UCLA women's basketball Pac-12 final bid". Daily Bruin. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
18. Hruby, Emma (April 19, 2023). "UCLA turns into scary contender with addition of Lauren Betts". Just Women's Sports. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
19. "Kiki Rice leads hot-shooting No. 2 UCLA to a win over No. 6 UConn in Cayman Islands". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. November 24, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
20. Harris, Beth (December 8, 2023). "No. 2 UCLA women rout Cal State Northridge 111-48 as Kiki Rice just misses quadruple-double". USA Today. Associated Press. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
21. "Kira Rice (USA)'s profile – FIBA U16 Women's Americas Championship 2019". FIBA. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
22. "Rice wins MVP; De Oliveira, Todd, McMahon, Tribouley, headline All-Star Five". FIBA. June 20, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
23. Kirschenbaum, Alex (August 7, 2023). "UCLA Women's Basketball: Dynamic Bruins Duo Discusses Star Turn In Summer FIBA Play". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
24. "Kiki Rice College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
25. DePaula, Nick (October 31, 2022). "UCLA's Kiki Rice lands Jordan Brand's first name, image and likeness deal". Andscape. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
26. Cowan, Garrett (March 18, 2024). "SNL, sold out jerseys, TV records. Caitlin Clark could be catalyst for women's basketball". ESPN Press Room (Press release).
27. Peterson, Chloe (April 16, 2024). "SNL, sold out jerseys, TV records. Caitlin Clark could be catalyst for women's basketball". Indianapolis Star.