TAMPA, Fla. (March 27, 2024) – At the bitter end, USF men's basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim reflected on the beginning.
 
"To start the season, it's a group that nobody gave a chance to,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "They didn't even take enough time to figure out who was on our roster. They just picked us wherever they were going to pick us (ninth in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll).
 
"But in a few weeks, they'll get their championship rings … because they are champions. The journey is the gift, from where we started to where we finished. They stayed true to each other. They stayed committed to each other. The gift is they created lifelong bonds and great memories together.''
 
For the USF Bulls, the final chapter was Sunday night's 70-65 defeat against the VCU Rams in the National Invitation Tournament's second round before a rabid crowd of 6,398 at the Yuengling Center. It was a disappointing ending for the Bulls (25-8), the AAC regular-season champions. Abdur-Rahim maintained that his team was worthy of an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.
 
The postseason was just window dressing, though, and it took nothing away from the accomplishments of a five-month marathon when the Bulls matured from largely ignored to one of the hottest stories in college basketball.
 
* It was the program's first regular-season conference title.
* The 25 victories (and 16 conference wins) were the most in the program's 53-season history.
* The 15-game winning streak was a program record.
* There were eight road victories — also a program record.
* The Bulls shot 73.7 percent from the free-throw line, second-best in program history (behind the 73.8 in 1978-79).
* They shot 36.7 percent from 3-point range — the best mark from distance in 22 years — and had a program-record 295 makes from beyond the arc.
* For the first time since 2007-08, the Bulls had more assists (491) than turnovers (356) as a team.
* Chris Youngblood finished as the team's leading scorer (15.3 points per game) with 505 points, making him just the 15th USF player all-time with at least one 500-point season.
* Amir Abdur-Rahim AAC Coach of the Year
* Chris Youngblood was named the AAC Co-Player of the Year
* Selton Miguel was named the AAC Sixth Man of the Year and the Most Improved Player
* Youngblood was a first-team All-AAC selection, while Miguel was a second-team honoree and Jayde Reid earned a spot on the AAC All-Freshman team.
* Two victories over top 25 ranked programs – at No. 10 Memphis and vs. No. 24 FAU – the program's first since the 2011-12 season when USF knocked off Seton Hall (23) and Louisville (19).
* A record crowd of 10,659 for an upset of No. 24 FAU at Yuengling Center, the first of three-straight sellout crowds to end the home season.
* The Bulls recorded three straight sellouts to end the regular season at home.
* Total home attendance of 93,642, the fourth-highest total in program history and highest since 2012-13.

"If you respect this game — as a team, as a unit — this game will give you a lot of good stuff,'' Youngblood said. "And that's what it gave us this year. We made history with this group of guys.''
 
"It was a great experience, man,'' Bulls forward Kasean Pryor said. "March is always the best of the best. We were the only American (AAC) team left standing. In the locker room after the game, coach told us that was how the first round of March Madness (NCAA Tournament) feels like. Kudos to VCU because they played a great game. But there's no doubt that we have a great team.''
 
Abdur-Rahim said he has had conversations with professional scouts about Selton Miguel and Pryor, who both "really helped themselves,'' but he expects to have many returning players next season.
 
He can't wait to "see the body change'' for freshman point guard Jayden Reid, "you know, when he's 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, driving on dudes, delivering the blow.'' He said the next few years will be fun with Daniel Tobiloba, the sparingly used but rapidly improving 7-foot, 240-pound center, who was a terror in recent practices.
 
And Youngblood?
 
"Y'all thought Chris Youngblood was good this year?'' Abdur-Rahim said. "Man, he has gotten better every year he has been in college. He's about to be scary.''
 
One thing seems certain:
 
USF will not be picked ninth in next season's AAC preseason poll.
 
"The one thing you can count on — and I say this humbly — is we're going to put a team on the floor that is competitive,'' Abdur-Rahim said. "A team that's prepared to win. And a team that's going to be about South Florida, what's on the front of their jersey.
 
"We'll always be looking for ways to grow. We set a standard this year. Now we've got to figure out a way to raise that standard. We've got to raise that standard again.''
 
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About USF Men's Basketball
The South Florida men's basketball team is led by Amir Abdur-Rahim, who was named the 11th head coach in program history on March 29, 2023. Abdur-Rahim was named the 2023 Mid-Major Coach of the Year (Hugh Durham Award) after leading Kennesaw State to its first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament berth in 2022-23. Abdur-Rahim's Kennesaw State team set an NCAA record as the fastest team to ever reach the NCAA Tournament after a one-win campaign, accomplishing the feat in a span of just three seasons. He was also named the 2022-23 NABC District 3 and ASUN Coach of the Year after leading Kennesaw State to both the regular season and tournament titles, and a school-record 26 wins.
 
USF has retired three numbers in its history: Chucky Atkins (12), Charlie Bradley (30), and Radenko Dobras (31). The Bulls have earned three NCAA tournament bids, appeared in the NIT eight times, and won the 2019 College Basketball Invitational.
 
For tickets, contact the USF Ticket Office at 1-800-Go-Bulls or by going online to USFBullsTix.com. Season tickets for the 2023-24 USF men's basketball slate are on sale now. To purchase season tickets, click here.
 
 
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