Rice head coach Mike Rhoades has announced the addition of former Owl standout Brent Scott to the coaching staff as assistant coach. Scott joins the Owls after spending the past four years as assistant coach at TCU.
This is Scott’s second stint coaching at his alma mater. He was also an assistant during the 2007-08 season.
“We’re very excited for Brent to be a part of our staff,” said Rice head coach Mike Rhoades. “To have a great player, student-athlete and person be back on campus and share his experiences of being a Rice Owl will only help our program and move it forward in the direction that we all want it to go.”
Scott helped in TCU’s transition to the Big 12 Conference in 2012-13, a season that saw the program record four wins over teams that advanced to postseason play, including a 62-55 decision over No. 5 Kansas, the school’s first-ever victory against a top-five opponent. During the 2014-15 season Scott helped the Horned Frogs to a 13-0 start and a No. 25 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25, their first Top 25 ranking in over 10 years.
Prior to TCU, Scott spent four years at LSU, helping the squad to a pair of postseason appearances, including an appearance in the second round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament. Scott mentored several of the Tigers’ top players, including 2009 SEC Player of the Year and current Washington Wizard Marcus Thornton, current Milwaukee Buck Johnny O’Bryant III and 2012 All-SEC second team selection and future NBA player Justin Hamilton.
“I feel blessed and excited to be coming back home to Rice,” said Scott. “I’m very thankful to Coach Rhoades for the opportunity. I’m really looking forward to working with him, his staff and the players as we continue building on what they having already started with Rice Owls basketball.”
This past year, Scott was inducted into the Rice Athletic Hall of Fame and became the seventh player in program history to have their jersey honored.
Scott, the 1990 Southwest Conference Freshman of the Year, was named All-Southwest Conference three straight years from 1990-93. He finished his career as the school’s all-time leader in points (1,906) and rebounds (1,049). He currently sits second in both categories. Scott is the school record holder in free throws made (432) and free throws attempted (744) while placing second in games started (116), fifth in field goal percentage (.552), eighth in rebounding average (8.97), ninth in scoring average, 12th in games played (117) and 17th in assists (235) and steals (110).
After his college career, Scott played professionally for 14 years, including a 16 game stint in the NBA with the Indiana Pacers in 1997. He won the 2000 Spanish National Championship with Real Madrid. He spent 13 years with First Division-level European teams while playing in the 1994 Greek, 1997 Spanish and 1998 and 2001 Italian All-Star Games. He was also a first team USBL member in 1997.
Rhoades added, “Brent has the experiences from being at a few different places, including a great and long playing career, to move our players forward as people, as players and as young men, which is what it is all about. I think that the growth that we can make as a program with Brent being here with his presence is exactly what we want for the future.
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