2019–2020: First MPBL season In May 2019, Nueva Ecija formally joined the
Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League as an expansion team for the league's
2019–20 season. Alvin Grey was the team's first head coach before being replaced by
Charles Tiu mid-season. Nueva Ecija finished 11th in the North with a 10–20 record.
2022–2026 In the lead-up to the
2022 season, Nueva Ecija took part in the
2021 Invitational. After sweeping Group C, the Rice Vanguards reached the finals against
Basilan Jumbo Plastic, but lost due to Philip Manalang's championship-winning buzzer beater in overtime, thus settling for the runner-up spot. The team would later take part in
FilBasket's
2022 Summer Championship. Competing as the
Nueva Ecija Capitals, they finished the elimination round with a 10–1 record and made the finals against the San Juan Knights as the series went into three games. The Capitals won the final game in overtime to clinch their first ever league championship, making way for a
rivalry with the San Juan franchise.
Regular season sweep With additions such as Hesed Gabo,
Will McAloney, and
Michael Mabulac, together with their new head coach in Jerson Cabiltes, Nueva Ecija then dominated the
2022 MPBL season with the league's first-ever regular season sweep, winning all 21 games. Mabulac was declared an all-star together with Bobby Balucanag, while Gabo and McAloney were both part of the All-MPBL First Team that season. The Rice Vanguards then swept the first two rounds of the playoffs against
Marikina and intraregional rivals
Pampanga. A challenge then rose for the team in the North Division finals against the defending division champion
San Juan Knights, as they would lose game 1 of the series. The Rice Vanguards fought back and won game 2 in overtime before ultimately defeating the Knights in game 3. In the
2022 finals, Nueva Ecija met the Marcelino-led
Zamboanga Family's Brand Sardines. The Rice Vanguards won the first two games at home but lost game 3 as the visiting team. The team then went on to win game 4 to bring Nueva Ecija and Central Luzon its first-ever MPBL championship. The
Finals MVP was awarded to
Byron Villarias. Despite Gabo moving to the
Philippine Basketball Association, signing with the
NLEX Road Warriors during the off-season, Nueva Ecija kept most of its key players for the
2023 season. The team continued to win in the regular season, starting with an 11–0 record, but would suffer its first regular season loss since 2020 against the Viernes-led
Sarangani Marlins. Nueva Ecija still proved to be contenders in 2023, finishing 2nd with a 23–5 record. After eliminating
Pasay in the first round, the Rice Vanguards once again met with the San Juan Knights. This time around, San Juan ended up sweeping the rematch, ending Nueva Ecija's repeat hopes. During the 2023–24 MPBL off-season, the team took part in the
Pilipinas Super League as part of its
2023–24 President's Cup, where they once again competed under the
Capitals moniker. During which, Jerson Cabiltes parted ways with the franchise as he would later become the head coach of expansion side
Pangasinan Heatwaves.
Don Dulay, who won an MPBL title with the
Davao Occidental Tigers, took on the head coaching job for the rest of the President's Cup and for the
2024 MPBL season.
Departure from the MPBL However by the end of 2025, Rice Vanguards released all of its players and members of the coaching staff. In January 2026, they announced they are filing a leave on absence effectively departing from the MPBL. ==Rivalries==