2017–18 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball team represented Florida Atlantic University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Owls, led by fourth-year head coach Michael Curry, played their home games at the FAU Arena in Boca Raton, Florida as members of Conference USA. They finished the season 12–19, 6–12 in C-USA play to finish in a tie for 11th place. They lost in the first round of the C-USA tournament to UAB.

2017–18 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball
ConferenceConference USA
Record12–19 (6–12 C-USA)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Charlemagne Gibbons
  • Ron Oliver
  • Jorge Sanz
Home arenaFAU Arena
Seasons
2017–18 Conference USA men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
Middle Tennessee162 .889258 .758
Old Dominion153 .833257 .781
Western Kentucky144 .7782711 .711
Marshall126 .6672511 .694
UTSA117 .6112015 .571
UAB108 .5562013 .606
North Texas810 .4442018 .526
FIU810 .4441418 .438
Southern Miss711 .3891618 .471
Louisiana Tech711 .3891716 .515
Florida Atlantic612 .3331219 .387
UTEP612 .3331120 .355
Rice414 .222724 .226
Charlotte216 .111623 .207
2018 C-USA Tournament winner

March 16, 2018, head coach Michael Curry was fired after four seasons at Florida Atlantic.[1] On March 22, it was announced that the school had hired Florida assistant head coach Dusty May as head coach.[2]

Previous season

The Owls finished the 2016–17 season 10–20, 6–12 in C-USA play to finish in a tie for 11th place. They lost in the first round of the C-USA tournament to Marshall.

Offseason

Departures

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownReason for departure
Adonis Filer0G6'3"195RS SeniorChicago Heights, ILGraduated
Jeantal Cylla1G6'6"210SophomoreLake Worth, TXTransferred to UNC Wilmington
William Gibbons4G6'1"180JuniorLithonia, GAGraduate transferred to Mid-America Christian
Nick Rutherford10G6'3"197SophomoreAllen, TXTransferred to Monmouth
Frank Booker11G6'4"190RS JuniorAugusta, GAGraduate transferred to South Carolina
Marcus Neely13G6'2"215RS SeniorFort Lauderdale, FLGraduated
Jordan Phillips21F6'5"195FreshmanColorado Springs, COTransferred to Coastal Alabama CC
Jesse Hill24F6'8"225SophomoreWartown, NJGraduate transferred to Tarleton State
Connor Shorten30F6'9"245SophomoreGladstone, NJLeft the team due to personal reasons

Incoming transfers

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownPrevious School
Payton Hulsey0G6'5"215SeniorMemphis, TNTransferred from College of Charleston. Will be eligible to play immediately since Hulsey graduated from College of Charleston.
Je'Quan Perry1G6'4"215JuniorCharleston, SCJunior college transferred from Spartanburg Methodist
Anthony Adger3G6'1"185RS JuniorAnderson, SCJunior college transferred from Spartanburg Methodist
Simeon Lepichev21F6'10"235JuniorSofia, BulgariaJunior college transferred from Kankakee CC
Amir Smith32F6'6"JuniorHouston, TXJunior college transferred from State Fair CC

2017 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
NameHometownHigh school / collegeHeightWeightCommit date
Byron Abrams
PG
Conyers, GAHeritage High School6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)175 lb (79 kg)Mar 21, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN grade: NR
Chisom Obidike
C
Uwani, NigeriaComenius School6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)214 lb (97 kg)Mar 21, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/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 November 15, 2017.

Roster

2017–18 Florida Atlantic Owls men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G0Payton Hulsey6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)215 lb (98 kg)RS SrSouthwind/College of CharlestonMemphis, TN
G1Je'Quan Perry6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)220 lb (100 kg)JrCharleston Collegiate
Spartanburg Methodist College
Charleston, SC
G2Jason Massey6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)190 lb (86 kg)RS SrAmerican Heritage
Brown
Cooper City, FL
G3Anthony Adger6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)180 lb (82 kg)RS JrCrescent
Spartanburg Methodist College
Anderson, SC
G4Byron Abrams6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)185 lb (84 kg)FrHeritageDecatur, GA
F5William Pfister6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)230 lb (104 kg)SrNW Florida StateStrasbourg, France
G10Devorious Brown6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)195 lb (88 kg)SoMorgan CountyMadison, GA
F11Tre' Maloney (W)6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)208 lb (94 kg)RS SoDillard
Georgia Highlands College
Fort Lauderdale, FL
G14Gerdarius Troutman6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)175 lb (79 kg)SrTaylor County
Georgia Highlands College
Butler, GA
F15Jailyn Ingram6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)215 lb (98 kg)SoMorgan CountyMadison, GA
F/C21Simeon Lepichev6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)226 lb (103 kg)JrKankakee CCSofia, Bulgaria
C30Kevin Rostamian (W)6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)270 lb (122 kg)SoCypress Bay
Hillsborough CC
Weston, FL
F32Amir Smith6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)210 lb (95 kg)JrRidge Point
State Fair CC
Houston, TX
C33Ronald Delph7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)245 lb (111 kg)RS SrLake Region
Auburn
Winter Haven, FL
C35Chisom Obidike6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)214 lb (97 kg)FrComenius SchoolUwani, Nigeria
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV
Rank#Opponent#ResultRecordSite (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
November 4, 2017*
4:30 pm, ESPN3
at LynnW 68–53 
de Hoernle Center 
Boca Raton, Florida
Non-conference regular season
November 10, 2017*
8:00 pm, ESPN3
at South FloridaL 59–60 0–1
USF Sun Dome (4,192)
Tampa, FL
November 16, 2017*
11:00 am
Edward WatersW 91–59 1–1
FAU Arena (1,791)
Boca Raton, Florida
November 20, 2017*
7:30 pm
vs. Towson
Gulf Coast Showcase quarterfinals
L 52–76 1–2
Germain Arena (823)
Estero, FL
November 21, 2017*
1:30 pm
vs. Northern Illinois
Gulf Coast Showcase consolation 2nd round
W 77–67 2–2
Germain Arena (841)
Estero, FL
November 22, 2017*
1:30 pm
vs. Missouri State
Gulf Coast Showcase 5th place game
L 60–71 2–3
Germain Arena (868)
Estero, FL
November 28, 2017*
3:30 pm
Ave MariaW 91–54 3–3
FAU Arena 
Boca Raton, Florida
December 2, 2017*
7:00 pm
Bethune–CookmanW 93–75 4–3
FAU Arena (881)
Boca Raton, Florida
December 5, 2017*
7:00 pm
at Florida Gulf CoastW 92–88 5–3
Alico Arena (3,418)
Fort Myers, FL
December 10, 2017*
12:00 pm
Webber InternationalW 106–46 6–3
FAU Arena 
Boca Raton, Florida
December 16, 2017*
7:00 pm
Arkansas StateL 63–64 6–4
FAU Arena 
Boca Raton, Florida
December 19, 2017*
8:00 pm, FSSW+
at No. 21 Texas TechL 54–90 6–5
United Supermarkets Arena (7,731)
Lubbock, TX
December 23, 2017*
3:30 pm, BTN
at MinnesotaL 60–95 6–6
Williams Arena (12,357)
Minneapolis, MN
Conference USA regular season
December 30, 2017
7:00 pm
at FIUL 57–58 0–1
(6–7)
FIU Arena (589)
Miami, Florida
Jan 4, 2018
7:00 pm
UABL 44–75 6–8
(0–2)
FAU Arena (1,091)
Boca Raton, Florida
Jan 6, 2018
5:00 pm
Middle TennesseeL 57–61 6–9
(0–3)
FAU Arena 
Boca Raton, Florida
Jan 11, 2018
9:00 pm
at UTEPW 73–66 7–9
(1–3)
Don Haskins Center (5,643)
El Paso, TX
Jan 13, 2018
3:00 pm
at UTSAW 73–69 8–9
(2–3)
Convocation Center (985)
San Antonio, TX
Jan 18, 2018
7:00 pm
CharlotteW 75–64 9–9
(3–3)
FAU Arena (1,307)
Boca Raton, Florida
Jan 21, 2018
2:00 pm
Old DominionL 62–73 9–10
(3–4)
FAU Arena (1,307)
Boca Raton, Florida
Jan 25, 2018
8:00 pm, ESPN3
at North TexasL 53–59 9–11
(3–5)
The Super Pit (1,952)
Denton, TX
Jan 27, 2018
3:00 pm
at RiceW 63–62 10–11
(4–5)
Tudor Fieldhouse (1,866)
Houston, TX
February 1, 2018
7:00 pm, Stadium
Louisiana TechL 62–67 10–12
(4–6)
FAU Arena (1,472)
Boca Raton, Florida
February 3, 2018
7:00 pm
Southern MissL 66–77 10–13
(4–7)
FAU Arena (1,559)
Boca Raton, Florida
February 8, 2018
8:30 pm
at Western KentuckyL 63–75 10–14
(4–8)
E. A. Diddle Arena (5,617)
Bowling Green, KY
February 10, 2018
7:00 pm
at MarshallL 68–79 10–15
(4–9)
Cam Henderson Center (5,761)
Huntington, WV
February 17, 2018
2:00 pm
FIUW 77–72 11–15
(5–9)
FAU Arena (1,198)
Boca Raton, Florida
February 22, 2018
7:00 pm
RiceL 76–79 OT11–16
(5–10)
FAU Arena (1,188)
Boca Raton, Florida
February 24, 2018
7:00 pm
North TexasW 74–54 12–16
(6–10)
FAU Arena (1,221)
Boca Raton, Florida
March 1, 2018
7:00 pm, ESPN3
at Old DominionL 64–69 12–17
(6–11)
Ted Constant Convocation Center (6,673)
Norfolk, VA
March 3, 2018
7:30 pm
at CharlotteL 78–85 12–18
(6–12)
Dale F. Halton Arena (4,587)
Charlotte, NC
Conference USA tournament
March 7, 2018
9:00 pm, Stadium
(11) vs. (6) UAB
First round
L 73–82 12–19
The Ford Center at The Star 
Frisco, TX
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time.

Source[3][4]

References