Olivier Rioux has once again etched his name in the NCAA history books after becoming the tallest player ever to start a Division 1 basketball game.

As the Guinness World Record holder for tallest male teenager, Rioux — who transferred to UC Irvine back in April — is frequently the focus of attention in whatever room he's able to squeeze into. Yet the 7-foot-9 center struggled to find his footing in Florida, only receiving sparse playing time with the Gators before joining the Anteaters this offseason.

It hasn’t taken long for Rioux to make his presence felt at UC Irvine, as the 20-year-old phenom earned the starting nod for Tuesday’s clash against Chapman. He didn’t let the golden opportunity go to waste, recording 13 points and 12 rebounds en route to propelling the Anteaters to a 92-66 win.

With just under 19 minutes left in the second half, Rioux delivered the highlight of the night when he received a feed along the baseline and pulled off a one-handed dunk while standing directly under the rim.

Rioux is hardly the only tall person in his family, which includes a 6-foot-2 mom, a 6-foot-8 dad, and a 6-foot-9 brother, per his Guinness World Records profile.

But none of the relatives compare to the towering center, who surpassed six feet by the age of eight and grew to become seven feet tall before entering seventh grade.

Speaking to the Associated Press' Mark Long in October 2024, Rioux acknowledged that his record-setting height often sparked conversation during his upbringing. "You get asked questions every day," he said.

"You don't have a single three seconds to yourself when you're outside, which I was fine with, because my brother and my dad are tall. And as a family, we used to go out. That's just how it was, and you can't change that because people are curious."

Due to his exceptional size, Rioux naturally turned to basketball at just five years old.

The Terrebonne, Quebec, native later enrolled at IMG Academy for high school before pledging to Florida as a preferred walk-on, turning down scholarship offers from UC Irvine and Morehead State.

Rioux’s time in Gainesville didn’t go according to plan, however, as he averaged only 1.5 minutes of playing time across 11 games last season following his redshirt freshman year.

After receiving considerable attention from a handful of programs across the country, Rioux eventually decided to take his talents to UC Irvine. "We cut it down to a dozen schools and then to four schools,” his agent, Peter Yannopoulos, told the Journal.

“Among Olivier’s priorities were playing time, development, and a vision for him on and off the field. From the beginning, UC Irvine wanted his services.”

The decision to leave Florida was not an easy one for Rioux, who said: "It's truly hard to put into words what these last two years and this experience has meant to me." But it appears as though the towering big man has found a new home amongst the Anteaters.