2017–18 South Florida Bulls men's basketball team

The 2017–18 South Florida Bulls men's basketball team represented the University of South Florida during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The season marked the 46th basketball season for USF, the fifth as a member of the American Athletic Conference, and the first season under head coach Brian Gregory. The Bulls played their home games at the USF Sun Dome on the university's Tampa, Florida campus. The Bulls finished the season 10–22, 3–15 in AAC play to finish in last place. As the No. 12 seed in the AAC tournament, they lost in the first round to Memphis.

2017–18 South Florida Bulls men's basketball
Conference	American Athletic Conference
Record	10–22 (3–15 AAC)
Head coach	Brian Gregory
Assistant coaches	Tom Herrion Chad Dollar Scott Wagers
Home arena	USF Sun Dome
Seasons ← 2016–17 2018–19 →

2017–18 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 6 Cincinnati †	16	–	2		.889			31	–	5		.861
No. 21 Houston	14	–	4		.778			27	–	8		.771
No. 16 Wichita State	14	–	4		.778			25	–	8		.758
Tulsa	12	–	6		.667			19	–	12		.613
Memphis	10	–	8		.556			21	–	13		.618
UCF	9	–	9		.500			19	–	13		.594
Temple	8	–	10		.444			17	–	16		.515
UConn	7	–	11		.389			14	–	18		.438
SMU	6	–	12		.333			17	–	16		.515
Tulane	5	–	13		.278			14	–	17		.452
East Carolina	4	–	14		.222			10	–	20		.333
South Florida	3	–	15		.167			10	–	22		.313
† 2018 AAC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

Previous season

The Bulls finished the 2015–16 season 7–23, 1–17 in AAC play to finish in last place. As the No. 11 seed in the AAC tournament, they lost in the first round to UConn.

The Bulls were led by head coach Orlando Antigua for the first 13 games of the season until he was fired amid academic fraud allegations.^[1][2] Following Antigua's firing, they were led by interim head coach Murry Bartow. On March 14, 2017, the school hired Brian Gregory as the next head coach.^[3]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Jahmal McMurray	0	G	6'0"	165	Sophomore	Topeka, KS	Transferred to SMU
Mike Bibby Jr.	10	G	6'3"	175	Freshman	Phoenix, AZ	Transferred to Appalachian State
Jake Bodway	11	G	6'3"	201	RS Junior	Bloomington, MN	Walk-on; didn't make the roster
Geno Thorpe	13	G	6'4"	170	RS Senior	Pittsburgh, PA	Graduate transferred to Syracuse
Malik Fitts	24	F	6'8"	237	Freshman	Rancho Cucamonga, CA	Transferred to Saint Mary's
Ruben Guerrero	33	C	7'0"	235	Junior	Marbella, Spain	Transferred to Samford
Bo Zeigler	35	F	6'6"	207	RS Junior	Detroit, MI	Graduate transferred to George Washington
Luis Santos	42	F	6'9"	266	Sophomore	Bronx, NY	Transferred to Saint Louis

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Stephan Jiggetts	0	G	6'1"	205	RS Senior	Forestville, MD	Transferred from Fairleigh Dickinson. Will be eligible to play immediately since Jiggetts graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson.
Terrence Samuel	2	G	6'3"	208	RS Senior	Brooklyn, NY	Transferred from Penn State. Will be eligible to play immediately since Samuel graduated from Penn State.
Laquincy Rideau	3	G	6'1"	204	Junior	West Palm Beach, FL	Transferred from Gardner–Webb. Under NCAA transfer rules, Rideau will have to sit out for the 2017–18 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Payton Banks	4	F	6'6"	223	RS Senior	Orange, CA	Transferred from Penn State. Will be eligible to play immediately since Banks graduated from Penn State.
T. J. Lang	10	G	6'7"	210	Senior	Mobile, AL	Transferred from Auburn. Under NCAA transfer rules, Lang will have to sit out for the 2017–18 season. Will have one year of remaining eligibility.
Nikola Scekic	41	C	7'1"	255	Junior	Belgrade, Serbia	Junior college transferred from Hutchinson CC.

2017 recruiting class

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Alexis Yetna #17 PF	Baltimore, MD	Putnam Science Academy	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Apr 19, 2017
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 79
David Collins SG	Pittsburgh, PA	First Love Christian Academy	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Apr 26, 2017
	Star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: NR
Justin Brown SF	Birmingham, AL	Hargrave Military Academy	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Apr 10, 2017
	Star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 6, 2017.

2018 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2018)
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Rashun Williams SF	Edison, GA	Calhoun County High School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Sep 4, 2017
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 79
Michael Durr C	Atlanta, GA	Oldsmar Christian School	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Sep 11, 2017
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 79
Xavier Castaneda PG	Chicago, IL	Whitney Young High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Sep 12, 2017
	Star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 78
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 6, 2017.

Preseason

At the conference's annual media day, the Bulls were picked to finish last in the AAC.^[4]

Roster

2017–18 South Florida Bulls men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Stephan Jiggetts 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Sr Fairleigh Dickinson Forestville, Maryland F 1 Isaiah Manderson 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 247 lb (112 kg) Sr Texas Tech Bronx, New York G 2 Terrence Samuel 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 208 lb (94 kg) RS Sr Penn State Brooklyn, New York G 3 Laquincy Rideau (I)  6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Gardner–Webb West Palm Beach, Florida G/F 4 Payton Banks 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 223 lb (101 kg) RS Sr Penn State Orange, California F 5 Malik Martin 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 214 lb (97 kg) RS Jr USC Miami, Florida G 10 T. J. Lang (I)  6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sr Auburn Mobile, Alabama G 11 David Collins 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr First Love Christian Academy Youngstown, Ohio G/F 13 Justin Brown 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Hargrave Military Academy (VA) Birmingham, Alabama G 14 Henry Beard (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 177 lb (80 kg) So Seminole High School Seminole, Florida F 15 Yito Alvarado (W) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 206 lb (93 kg) RS So University School of NSU San Juan, Puerto Rico F 21 Tulio Da Silva 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 206 lb (93 kg) RS So Arlington Country Day School Formiga, Brazil G 22 Joey Coffaro (W) 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr John Hersey High School Arlington Heights, Illinois F 23 Alexis Yetna 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Putnam Science Academy (CT) Paris, France G 25 Troy Holston 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Jr Oldsmar Christian School Queens, New York C 41 Nikola Scekic 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Jr Hutchinson Community College Belgrade, Serbia	Head coach Brian Gregory (Oakland) Assistant coach(es) Tom Herrion (Merrimack) Chad Dollar (South Florida) Scott Wagers (Tennessee Wesleyan) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
Nov 3, 2017* 7:00 pm		Flagler	W 94–66		USF Sun Dome (1,307) Tampa, FL
Non-conference regular season
Nov 10, 2017* 8:00 pm, ESPN3		Florida Atlantic	W 60–59	1–0	USF Sun Dome (4,192) Tampa, FL
Nov 13, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Morgan State	L 53–63	1–1	USF Sun Dome (2,116) Tampa, FL
Nov 15, 2017* 8:00 pm, ESPN3		at Stetson	W 75–72	2–1	Edmunds Center (836) Deland, FL
Nov 19, 2017* 6:00 pm, BTN		at Indiana Hoosier Tip-Off Classic	L 53–70	2–2	Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN
Nov 22, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Howard Hoosier Tip-Off Classic	W 75–52	3–2	USF Sun Dome (2,080) Tampa, FL
Nov 24, 2017* 12:00 pm		Arkansas State Hoosier Tip-Off Classic	W 72–61	4–2	USF Sun Dome (2,284) Tampa, FL
Nov 26, 2017* 4:00 pm, ESPN3		Eastern Michigan Hoosier Tip-Off Classic	L 47–65	4–3	USF Sun Dome (2,050) Tampa, FL
Nov 30, 2017* 7:00 pm		at Elon	L 78–79 OT	4–4	Alumni Gym (1,534) Elon, NC
Dec 2, 2017* 7:00 pm		at Appalachian State	L 61–84	4–5	Holmes Center (1,506) Boone, NC
Dec 11, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		FIU	L 53–64	4–6	USF Sun Dome (2,040) Tampa, FL
Dec 14, 2017* 7:00 pm		Bethune–Cookman	W 83–63	5–6	USF Sun Dome (2,091) Tampa, FL
Dec 18, 2017* 7:00 pm		Northern Arizona	W 70–56	6–6	USF Sun Dome (2,016) Tampa, FL
Dec 21, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3		Charlotte	W 78–76	7–6	USF Sun Dome (2,099) Tampa, FL
AAC regular season
Dec 28, 2017 7:00 pm, ESPNews		Houston	L 60–79	7–7 (0–1)	USF Sun Dome (2,273) Tampa, FL
Dec 31, 2017 8:00 pm, ESPNU		at SMU	L 39–79	7–8 (0–2)	Moody Coliseum (6,477) Dallas, TX
Jan 3, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3		East Carolina	L 65–67	7–9 (0–3)	USF Sun Dome (2,148) Tampa, FL
Jan 7, 2018 4:00 pm, CBSSN		at No. 9 Wichita State	L 57–95	7–10 (0–4)	Charles Koch Arena (10,506) Wichita, KS
Jan 13, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPNews		No. 14 Cincinnati	L 55–78	7–11 (0–5)	USF Sun Dome (3,609) Tampa, FL
Jan 17, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPN3		at East Carolina	L 52–90	7–12 (0–6)	Williams Arena (2,857) Greenville, NC
Jan 20, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPNU		UCF Rivalry	L 69–71	7–13 (0–7)	USF Sun Dome (4,611) Tampa, FL
Jan 25, 2018 9:00 pm, ESPNU		at Tulane	W 80–75	8–13 (1–7)	Devlin Fieldhouse (1,717) New Orleans, LA
Jan 28, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN3		at Houston	L 40–63	8–14 (1–8)	H&PE Arena (3,121) Houston, TX
Jan 31, 2018 8:30 pm, ESPNews		Memphis	L 74–86	8–15 (1–9)	USF Sun Dome (2,754) Tampa, FL
Feb 4, 2018 2:00 pm, ESPN3		Tulsa	L 54–63	8–16 (1–10)	USF Sun Dome (2,484) Tampa, FL
Feb 7, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPNU		at UConn	L 65–68	8–17 (1–11)	Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (6,636) Storrs, CT
Feb 10, 2018 12:00 pm, ESPNU		Temple	L 55–73	8–18 (1–12)	USF Sun Dome (2,576) Tampa, FL
Feb 14, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPNews		at UCF Rivalry	L 57–72	8–19 (1–13)	CFE Arena (4,310) Orlando, FL
Feb 18, 2018 3:00 pm, ESPN3		at Tulsa	L 61–73	8–20 (1–14)	Reynolds Center (4,120) Tulsa, OK
Feb 24, 2018 12:00 pm, ESPNU		Tulane	L 68–79	8–21 (1–15)	USF Sun Dome (2,228) Tampa, FL
Mar 1, 2018 9:00 pm, ESPNews		at Memphis	W 75–51	9–21 (2–15)	FedEx Forum (5,945) Memphis, TN
Mar 4, 2018 2:00 pm, ESPNews		SMU	W 65–54	10–21 (3–15)	USF Sun Dome (2,593) Tampa, FL
AAC tournament
Mar 8, 2018 2:30 pm, ESPNU	(12)	vs. (5) Memphis First round	L 77–79	10–22	Amway Center (7,856) Orlando, FL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

References

1. "Struggling South Florida fires coach Antigua". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
2. "South Florida fires Orlando Antigua amid academic fraud investigation". UPI. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
3. "South Florida hires Brian Gregory as head coach". USA TODAY. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
4. "Cincinnati Selected as 2017–18 American Men's Basketball Preseason Favorite". Retrieved October 24, 2017.