Giant Canadian makes March Madness history and leaves opponent in disbelief
It’s not too often that a 6-foot-8 basketball player looks up at an opposition player in disbelief.
But that’s what happened to Prairie View A&M forward Hassane Diallo on Friday night.
Olivier Rioux of the Florida Gators was recently the world’s tallest teenager before his 20th birthday back on Feb. 2. Earlier this season, he became the tallest player ever to suit up in a college basketball game.
Then, during Florida’s first March Madness game on Friday, Rioux made history.
The towering 7-foot-9 centre became the tallest player ever to enter a March Madness game.
His presence seemed to rattle Diallo.
Sizing up the tallest player in college basketball history pic.twitter.com/dvzaFaBqiZ
— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) March 21, 2026
“You big boy,” Diallo appears to say to Rioux late in the contest.
Not only that, but Rioux also became the tallest player to score in a March Madness contest.
7'9 OLIVIER RIOUX DUNK ALERT šØ
HE BARELY JUMPED OFF THE GROUND
Watch March Madness on TNT Sports pic.twitter.com/t5ftL13mJi
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 21, 2026
Rioux entered the game late before Florida closed out the second-largest margin of victory in March Madness history. He secured the ball and dunked it, with his feet barely leaving the ground.
“It’s incredible,” current Gators teammate, 7-foot-1 centre Micah Handlogten, said last season. “He stands up, and his hands are above the rim. He’s such a big presence.”
Shaq met 7'9 freshman Olivier Rioux š¤£ @GatorsMBK
(via ShaqDieselONeal, TikTok) pic.twitter.com/A4PC2fl9eE
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) January 12, 2025
The crowd erupted into chants of “Ollie, Ollie” following his score. Rioux’s teammates were also celebrating hard on the sidelines.
Rioux has been a sparsely used player for the Gators during his rookie season. He’s only entered the game late in winning situations for one of the highest-ranked college basketball teams in the states, playing 17 minutes across 11 games, including Friday night’s contest.
The Terrebonne, Quebec native was on the Gators roster last season. However, he didn’t play a single minute for the team, which allowed Florida to retain an extra year of eligibility with the Canadian.
“He’s more than just a 7-9 guy,” Gators head coach Todd Golden said last season.
“He has flashes in practice where he’ll make some plays, and you’re like, ‘Whoa.’ “Like, obviously, we can’t do that with anybody else.”
Rioux and the Gators play their next game on Sunday, March 22, against the Iowa Hawkeyes.