Owls at the Olympics: Ogwumike is up

Rice Owls alumni are showcasing their skills in the Tokyo Olympics.

Erica Ogwumike

Erica Ogwumike ’20, who is playing basketball for Nigeria, starts first when her team faces the United States, the heavy favorite to win gold, at 11:40 p.m. CDT July 26 in the first of three preliminary-round games. Then Ariana Ince ’11 will throw the javelin as part of the United States track and field team; the qualifying round is set for Aug. 2, with the finals Aug. 6.

Ogwumike excelled for the Owls from 2017-20, winning back-to-back Conference USA Player of the Year awards in her final two seasons. She is at the top of the Rice career leaderboard in points per game, is second in rebounds per game and is third in free-throw percentage, numbers amassed while leading her team to two C-USA championships. She was selected in the 2020 WNBA Draft but decided to pursue a medical career.

Ariana Ince (RiceOwls.com photo)

Ince, an outstanding all-around athlete, took a circuitous route to javelin stardom. She began her career at Rice as a pole vaulter, sweeping the C-USA indoor and outdoor titles in 2010 and 2011 while helping the Owls win team championships during those indoor seasons. After switching to the javelin, she finished second at the C-USA outdoor meet her junior year and 14th at the NCAA West Prelims her senior year.

“If you had told me my freshman year at Rice that I would be an Olympian, I would have been surprised. If you had told me my first Olympic team wouldn’t be until I was 32, in an event I didn’t even do yet and after a global pandemic I would have laughed at you,” she told RiceOwls.com after her selection, which followed a fourth-place finish at the U.S. Olympic Trials in June. “Rice was so instrumental both for introducing me to a new event but also supporting me in my training long after I graduated. I’m thrilled to represent Rice and the USA on a global stage.”

Arsalan Kazemi

Rice alum Arsalan Kazemi is representing Iran in men’s basketball. He played for the Owls from 2009-2012 before transferring to the University of Oregon. He later earned a degree at Rice.

Fans can watch the action online at NBCOlympics.com, which will stream all events from Tokyo. In addition, the Nigeria-U.S. women’s basketball game will be televised on the USA Network.

Team Nigeria preliminary round schedule (all times CDT)

July 26: United States 81, Nigeria 72

July 30: France 87, Nigeria 62

Aug. 1: Japan 102, Nigeria 83

Ariana Ince javelin schedule

Preliminary round (group B): 54.98 meters (did not qualify for final)

Team Iran preliminary round schedule

July 24: Czech Republic 84, Iran 78

July 27: United States 120, Iran 66

July 30: France 79, Iran 62