{"id":48881,"date":"2026-05-17T11:09:07","date_gmt":"2026-05-17T11:09:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/48881\/"},"modified":"2026-05-17T11:09:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-17T11:09:07","slug":"toronto-tempo-say-ucla-star-kiki-rice-has-not-disappointed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/48881\/","title":{"rendered":"Toronto Tempo say UCLA star Kiki Rice has not disappointed"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Kiki Rice<\/a> dribbled to the hoop, deked and then put up a shot over the Toronto Tempo practice squad, crisp ombre blue-and-burgundy nails releasing the ball into the basket.<\/p>\n

Just over a month ago and just about 10 miles away, Rice\u2018s blue-and-yellow nails grasped the NCAA championship trophy<\/a> in celebration at Pauley Pavilion. That\u2019s when she was starring for UCLA and leading the Bruins to their first NCAA national title<\/a> during her fourth college season.<\/p>\n

She was one of six Bruins to be selected in the WNBA draft<\/a> on April 14, with all of them sticking to notoriously difficult-to-crack WNBA rosters. Rice was the expansion Toronto Tempo\u2019s first college pick.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got really lucky getting her in the draft,\u201d Tempo coach Sandy Brondello said. \u201cShe hasn\u2019t disappointed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Kiki <\/p>\n

Former UCLA star Kiki Rice holds up a Toronto Tempo jersey next to WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert. Rice was the Tempo\u2019s first draft pick and was selected No. 6.<\/p>\n

(Angelina Katsanis \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

In her first two WNBA games, Rice has averaged<\/a> 7.7 points and 1.3 assists in 20 minutes per game. She has been coming off of the bench to back up starting point guard Julie Allemand<\/a>, who the Tempo took from the Sparks in the expansion draft.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s definitely a lot of adjustments and getting used to what it is like inside this level,\u201d Rice said on Friday. \u201cBut I\u2019m with great vets, really great coaches, and I\u2019m really enjoying the play as a pro.\u201d<\/p>\n

The No. 6 pick in this year\u2019s WNBA draft, Rice elevated her stock as a prospect by having her best UCLA season. She finished her senior season averaging 14.9 points per game with 5.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists, and was named the Big Ten tournament MVP<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Ahead of the NCAA tournament, WNBA scouts said that her defensive prowess and willingness to charge to the basket made her emerge as an early first-round candidate.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe stays confident in who she is, and that\u2019s what we just pour into her,\u201d Brondello said. \u201cShe comes from a really successful, you know, college program in UCLA. Cori [Close]<\/a> is a great coach, and you know, pushed her hard for greatness. So she\u2019s very mature. She knows that there\u2019s another level that she can go to. She\u2019s going to work really hard to get there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rice went through the WNBA rookie gauntlet, going from the NCAA championship game to the draft within a week and then straight to the Tempo\u2019s training camp.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s something we all go through, it\u2019s the same for all the rookies,\u201d Rice said. \u201cI feel like I haven\u2019t slept a ton the past few weeks. It\u2019s definitely not easy, it happens very quickly, but I am very grateful to be in the position.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sparks coach Lynne Roberts<\/a> coached against Rice during her first two UCLA seasons while the former was the head coach at Utah.<\/p>\n

\"Tempo <\/p>\n

Tempo guard Kiki Rice drives past the Storm\u2019s Zia Cooke during expansion franchise Toronto\u2019s first win on Wednesday in Toronto.<\/p>\n

(Michael Chisholm \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cI think she\u2019s going to do well with Sandy in her system,\u201d Roberts said on Friday. \u201cI saw over the course of her four years … her decision making, you know, improve and get better, which is natural, and her outside shot get more comfortable. … She\u2019s going to be a good player to watch.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rice faced her old teammates Lauren Betts<\/a> and Angela Dugalic<\/a> with the Washington Mystics in the franchise\u2019s first game on May 8, and the trio hugged at center court in Toronto. Rice had one assist and no points in 18 minutes during the loss. She rebounded with 12 points and one assist in 21 minutes during the franchise\u2019s first win over the Seattle Storm on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlaying with five other pros, you got the advantage of really competitive practices,\u201d Rice said of her time at UCLA. \u201c[The draft] was an incredible moment, something that\u2019s very special for all of us. We didn\u2019t do it alone, and to be able to share it with some of my closest friends, and to hear everyone\u2019s name, be called to see everyone walk across the stage, be able to celebrate together, enjoy the moment, was special.\u201d<\/p>\n

This weekend provided a different kind of reunion, with her UCLA coaches in attendance Friday night as Rice scored 11 points and added two assists in 21 minutes during a loss to the Sparks<\/a>. The Tempo rallied to within one possession in the final minute and get a rematch on Sunday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kiki Rice dribbled to the hoop, deked and then put up a shot over the Toronto Tempo practice…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":48882,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[48],"class_list":{"0":"post-48881","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-toronto","8":"tag-toronto"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48881","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48881"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48881\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48881"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48881"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48881"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}