Boise State coach Leon Rice on his time at Gonzaga: 'It was a special thing to be able to come here'

Rice was on Mark Few's staff for 11 seasons before becoming Boise State's winningest head coach in program history

As Gonzaga men's basketball continues its unfathomable run of excellence in the West Coast Conference and NCAA Tournament, many former assistant coaches have moved into head coaching positions across the country, from Roger Powell at Valparaiso to Tommy Lloyd in Arizona.

That list also includes current Boise State head coach Leon Rice, who served as the associate head coach with the Bulldogs from 2007-10. During his 11 years on Few's staff, Gonzaga made it to the Sweet 16 four times (2000, 2001, 2006 and 2009) and the second round four more times (2003, 2004, 2005 and 2010).

Rice took over at Boise State heading into the 2010-11 season, and since then he's become the program's all-time winningest head coach. His 277 career wins are the second-most in Mountain West Conference history. He won the league's Coach of the Year award in 2022 after guiding the Broncos to the NCAA Tournament while setting the program record for wins in a season with 27.

Rice reflected on his time with Few and the Bulldogs on a new episode of Gonzaga Nation.

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