During halftime of Florida’s blowout win over Northern Florida on Thursday night, coach Todd Golden heard some fans chirping about how he needed to play redshirt freshman Olivier Rioux.

Florida fans had waited more than a year to see the 7-foot-9 marvel take the court for the Gators, wanting to finally catch a glimpse of the tallest player in college basketball history.

“I said, ‘Listen, it will happen, the time will come.’ I can be stubborn,” Golden said. “I don’t listen to direction very well at times, so when they’re yelling at me to do it, it’s kinda like, ‘Well, maybe I’ll wait a little longer.’”

With 2:09 remaining and the game comfortably in hand, and “We Want Ollie” chants permeating the arena, per the Associated Press , Golden finally acquiesced.

Rioux rose from the bench an

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