Why isn't 7-foot-9 Olivier Rioux playing for Florida in the national championship?
It's been nearly impossible to follow college basketball this season without hearing about Florida freshman Olivier Rioux. The 7-foot-9 center has been all over social media, but he won't be taking the court for the Gators' national championship matchup with Houston.
The reason is simple.
Rioux arrived to Gainesville as a three-star recruit and was largely seen as a developmental project despite his remarkable height. So, in the interest of maintaining his first year of eligibility, Rioux took a redshirt for this season.
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To keep that redshirt status, Rioux hasn't appeared in a game this season. That won't change on Monday night either.
We'll have to see what his playing time looks like next year, though. He won't be easy to miss.