USF Bulls Men's Basketball Team at AAC Media Day
Head coach Brian Gregory and basketball players Stephan Jiggetts and Malik Martin represented the USF men's basketball teams at American Athletic Conference Media Day on Monday at the Philadelphia Airport Marriott. The American’s Hali Oughton anchored live coverage from Philadelphia and was be joined by broadcast veterans Andy Katz, Monica McNutt and Mike O’Donnell.
Coverage began at 7:45 a.m. ET, with the reveal of the men’s basketball preseason poll, all-conference teams and preseason player and rookie of the year honorees. Katz, a renowned voice in college basketball, will anchor roundtable conversations with the 12 men’s basketball head coaches of The American.
Last year Jahmal McMurray was named to the American Athletic Conference's Preseason Second Team. This year, with ten newcomers on the roster, no USF player was named to the preseason all-conference teams.
USF was picked to finish last in the preseason poll voted on by the conference’s head coaches. Cincinnati – last season's league runner-up – was picked by the coaches to win the regular season, collecting seven of 12 first place votes. Newcomer Wichita State – a Top 10 choice in most national preseason rankings – was second in the poll with the other five first place nods.
2017-18 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE PRESEASON COACHES' POLL Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Pts.
1. Cincinnati (7) 116
2. Wichita State (5) 115
3. UCF 93 4. SMU 91
5. UConn 79
6. Houston 72
7. Temple 68
8. Tulsa 52
9. Memphis 36
10. Tulane 30
11. ECU 24
12. USF 16
2017-18 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE PRESEASON INDIVIDUAL HONORS Preseason Player of the Year
Shake Milton, G, Jr., SMU
Preseason Rookie of the Year
Alterique Gilbert, G, r-Fr., UConn
Preseason All-Conference Teams First Team
Shake Milton, G, SMU
Jalen Adams, G, UConn
Rob Gray, G, Houston
Landry Shamet, G, Wichita State
B.J. Taylor, G, UCF
Second Team
Gary Clark, F, Cincinnati
Junior Etou, F, Tulsa
Jacob Evans, G/F, Cincinnati
Tacko Fall, C, UCF
Kyle Washington, F, Cincinnati
The 2017-18 season gets underway on Nov. 10 when the Bulls host FAU in the USF Sun Dome at 8 p.m.
The 2018 American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Championship will take place March 8-11 at the Amway Center in Orlando, Fla. ESPN networks will provide live coverage of the first two days of the championship, with CBS Sports carrying the semifinals and championship game.
Click here for more coverage from the AAC basketball media day in Philadelphia.