2007-2008 Big East Conference Preview- #15

#15- South Florida Bulls

Sun Dome, Tampa, FL.

Last season: 12-18 (3-13). No postseason.
Head coach: Stan Heath, 1st season. 0-0 at USF.
Assistant coaches: Reggie Hanson, Byron Samuels, Dan Hipsher.

New additions: Mobolaji Ajayi (2 star center, JC transfer), Orane Chin (3 star SF), Dante Curry (3 star PG), Mohamed Esseghir (IPFW transfer), Aaron Holmes (FSU transfer, 4 star SG), Dominique Jones (3 star SG).

Losses: Melvin Buckley (14.8 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.0 apg), McHugh Mattis (12.8 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 1.7 apg), Zaronn Cann (3.0 ppg, 0.8 rpg), Melvyn Richardson (2.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg), Chris Capko (1.8 ppg, 2.2 apg), Jared Rubens, Bobby Torres.

Roster: (#, Name, Ht/Wt, Pos., Class, Hometown, last year's stats)

33 Mobolaji Ajayi 6-9/225 F Jr. Kano, Nigeria
22 Solomon Bozeman 6-0/165 G So. Magnolia, AR (9.6 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 3.5 apg)
15 Orane Chin 6-7/195 F Fr. Clarendon, Jamaica
10 Dante Curry 6-4/175 G RS-Fr. Kissimmee, FL
34 Mohamed Esseghir 6-10/225 F Sr. Apollo Beach, FL
1 Kentrell Gransberry 6-9/270 C Sr. Baton Rouge, LA (15.6 ppg, 11.4 rpg, 1.1 apg)
20 Aaron Holmes 6-5/185 G/F RS-Fr. St. Petersburg, FL (eligible mid-December)
3 Chris Howard 6-3/200 G So. Lorton, VA (5.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 5.9 apg)
0 Dominique Jones 6-4/205 G Fr. Lake Wales, FL
5 Eddie Lovett 6-0/180 G Sr. Riviera Beach, FL (0.9 ppg, 0.5 rpg, 0.5 apg)
21 Adamu Saaka 6-6/195 G/F So. Decatur, GA (3.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.2 apg)
23 Jesus Verdejo 6-4/205 G Jr. Carolina, Puerto Rico (7.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 2.0 apg)
32 Aris Williams 6-9/235 F Jr. Columbia, MD (3.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 0.6 apg)

Backcourt:

The Bulls are coming off their 2nd season in the Big East and have a new direction under coach Stan Heath. Heath should inject passion and a desire to succeed into his team. They have a solid recruiting class coming in this season and I expect Heath to develop these players over the next four years, bringing South Florida out of the bottom of the conference. In the backcourt, Solomon Bozeman returns for his sophomore campaign after a successful freshman season in Tampa. Bozeman averaged almost 10 points per game while pulling down 3 boards and dishing out 3.5 assists last season. Bozeman will be counted on to get others involved and handle some of the scoring load on his own. Aaron Holmes is a talented player who transferred from Leonard Hamilton's Florida State program. He'll be eligible after the first semester and should make an impact in the Big East portion of the schedule. Chris Howard is a good guard who averaged just about 6 assists a game in his limited time last season due to recovery from a knee injury. He's injured his left knee twice in two years, so that is obviously a concern for Stan Heath. They need Howard to be healthy to energize their backcourt. Puerto Rican Jesus Verdejo will provide solid veteran leadership in USF's backcourt. Dominique Jones should see time off the bench and I expect him to be a solid four year player for the Bulls. In the end, I think the losses of Melvin Buckley and McHugh Mattis will be too much to overcome for this young team.

Frontcourt:

You can't talk about South Florida's frontcourt without mentioning Kentrell Gransberry. This former LSU transfer lit up the Big East last year for 15.6 ppg and a staggering 11.4 rpg. On a team with only three seniors (two of which don't figure to see much playing time), Gransberry will be counted on to provide leadership on and off the court for this young Bulls team. He will carry just about all of the scoring load and an injury to Gransberry would be absolutely devestating to USF. Mobolaji Ajayi, a junior college transfer, should be able to spell Gransberry when he needs a blow. Other than that, USF doesn't have much depth in the frontcourt. Aris Williams, a 6-9 forward, should earn a starting job but he only averaged 3.5 ppg last season. If Gransberry gets into any kind of foul trouble, USF will be eaten alive by the bigger and better frontcourts in this conference.

Schedule:

11/9- vs. Cleveland State
11/13- at Buffalo
11/16- vs. Rhode Island (Daytona Beach, FL)
11/17- vs. Florida Atlantic (Daytona Beach, FL)
11/18- vs. Florida State (Daytona Beach, FL)
11/24- vs. East Carolina
11/26- at Florida International
12/1- vs. Central Florida
12/5- at Richmond
12/8- vs. UAB
12/19- at Wake Forest
12/22- vs. St. Francis (NY)
12/29- vs. Winston-Salem State
1/2- vs. Rutgers
1/5- at Syracuse
1/9- vs. Pittsburgh
1/12- at Providence
1/17- at Seton Hall
1/20- vs. West Virginia
1/23- vs. Louisville
1/29- at Marquette
2/2- vs. St. John's
2/5- at Georgetown
2/9- at DePaul
2/13- vs. Syracuse
2/16- vs. Connecticut
2/20- at Cincinnati
2/26- vs. Seton Hall
3/1- at Rutgers
3/5- at Villanova
3/8- vs. Notre Dame

Projected record: 12-19 (3-15).
Postseason: None.