Dave Rice joined the BYU coaching staff as an assistant in May 2005 and was promoted to Associate Head Coach in April 2008. Rice has 19 years of coaching experience, including 17 seasons at the Division I level at BYU, UNLV and Utah State. As a player, Rice was a member of UNLVs 1989-90 National Championship and 1990-91 Final Four teams that won a school-record 45 consecutive games. During his time as both a player and a coach, he has played with or helped guide 13 players who went on to play in the National Basketball Association, eight of whom were drafted in the first round, including six lottery picks.
An excellent recruiter and on-the-floor coach, Rice coordinates the teams offense and recruiting efforts. In his five seasons coordinating the Cougar offense, BYU has generated the Mountain West Conferences top attack four years and ranked second once. This past season the Cougars ranked among the top 20 nationally in numerous offensive categories, including free throw percentage (1st, 79.0), scoring offense (2nd, 83.1), scoring margin (2nd, 16.7), three-point field goal percentage (2nd), field goal percentage (13th, 48.3), and assist to turnover ratio (15th, 1.36). BYU led the MWC in scoring offense, scoring margin, field goal percentage, free throw percentage and three-point field goal percentage.
In 2008-09, BYU ranked among the top 20 nationally in numerous offensive categories, including scoring margin (9th, 11.9), field goal percentage (8th, 48.4), assists per game (16th, 16.3) and assist to turnover ratio (7th, 1.43). In 2007-08, the Cougars ranked 21st in assists per game (16.8) and 22nd in scoring margin (+10.5) while also setting a school record for assist-to-field goal ratio at 64.8 percent. In 2006-07, BYU ranked among the top 30 in the nation in three-point field-goal percentage (5th, .415), scoring (24th, 78.1 ppg) and scoring margin (25th, +9.0). In his first season at BYU, Rice helped the Cougars become the nations second-most improved team with a 20-9 overall record.
Rice has helped BYU earn five straight 20-win seasons including 25-plus wins in the last four and a 127-40 overall record while recording back-to-back outright Mountain West Conference Championships in 2007 and 2008 and sharing the title in 2009 the programs first string of three-straight titles since 1932-34. The Cougars have also appeared in the national top-25 polls and reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the last four seasons both firsts in program history.
Rice came to BYU from Utah State University where he helped Coach Stew Morrill and the Aggies earn a 24-8 record, a Big West Conference Tournament title and an NCAA Tournament bid in 2004-05. In his one season at Utah State, Rices coaching duties included working with the offense and coaching the guards. In 2004-05, the Aggies led the nation in field-goal percentage (school-record .525) and ranked fourth nationally in scoring margin (+14.6), 10th in assists (17.2) and 20th in three-point field goal percentage (.391).
Rice spent 11 seasons as an assistant coach at UNLV, which is the second-longest tenure ever for an assistant in that program. While in Las Vegas, Rice worked under four head coaches including Jerry Tarkanian, Tim Grgurich, Bill Bayno and Charlie Spoonhour. In his last eight seasons at UNLV, the Runnin Rebels received seven postseason invitations and averaged 20 wins per year.
In addition to his Division I experience, Rice served as an assistant coach for one season at Chaffey (Calif.) College in 1994, helping the Panthers to a 32-6 record and an appearance in the California State Final Four. He also spent one season at Claremont (Calif.) High School, where he was an assistant coach under his father Lowell, a long-time high school coach. That team went 21-7, winning the Baseline League Championship and reaching the CIF quarterfinals. Rice earned his bachelors degree in political science from UNLV in 1991 and his MBA in 1993. He was also a two-time UNLV Scholar-Athlete of the Year and a Rhodes Scholar candidate.
Prior to playing at UNLV, Rice began his college career at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, Calif., where he earned All-South Coast Conference honors as a sophomore and was chosen from among more than 13,000 student-athletes as the 1989 California Junior College Scholar-Athlete of the Year. He graduated from Claremont High School. A native of Claremont, Calif., Rice and his wife Mindy have two sons, Travis and Dylan.
Coach Rose on Rice:
"Dave has been a big part of the success of our program over the past three years. He is an outstanding teacher of the game and has always been part of successful programs both as a player and a coach. Dave possesses a complete knowledge of the game and has done a terrific job coordinating our game plans and recruiting efforts. He is also a tireless worker and a great person."
Dave Rice Coaching Experience
BYU, Associate Head Coach, 2008-Present
BYU, Assistant Coach, 2005-2008
Utah State, Assistant Coach, 2004-05
UNLV, Assistant Coach, 1991-92, 1994-2004
Chaffey (Calif.) College, Assistant Coach, 1993-94
Claremont (Calif.) High School, Assistant Coach, 1992-93
Dave Rice