Men’s Basketball Announces AJ Dancler Will Miss Season With Injury
August 31, 2026 | Men's Basketball
TAMPA (AUG. 31, 2026) – South Florida Men's Basketball Head Coach Chris Mack announced today that senior transfer guard AJ Dancler will miss the 2026-27 season after undergoing surgery last Thursday to correct a knee injury suffered during team workouts this summer.
"It's obviously disappointing for AJ and our team that he won't be able to compete this season," Mack said. "He is a 1,000-point scorer that brings a lot of experience and talent to our roster. He will remain with the team and we'll support him through his surgery and a great rehabilitation of the knee until he can get back on the court and begin practicing again."
The 6-2 guard joined South Florida in April after playing two seasons at Le Moyne College and one at Coastal Carolina. A 32-game starter at Coastal last season, he scored 15.6 points per game and added 5.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Dancler came to USF with 1,122 career points, 356 rebounds and 206 steals, while the career 38.8 percent three-point shooter logged 168 made threes.
The 2026-27 South Florida Basketball Season presented by Tampa General Hospital will tip off on Monday, Nov. 2 vs. Charleston Southern in the Yuengling Center. It will be the first of a 14-game non-conference schedule. Fans first look at a new Bulls team will be an exhibition game on Oct. 19 vs. St. Leo in the Yuengling Center.
Coming off winning American Conference regular season and tournament titles and making the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 14 years last season, the Bull's first season under head coach Chris Mack will feature eight non-conference home games, four road games and two neutral site contests. Highlighting the non-conference opponents will be Alabama (Sat., Dec. 19), which went 25-20 last year, reached the NCAA Sweet 16 and finished No. 14 in the final NET rankings and No. 16 in the Associated Press Poll. The Crimson Tide will come to Tampa as part of a two-for-one series following a thrilling 104-93 win over the Bulls in Tuscaloosa, Ala., last year.
Season tickets for the 2026-27 season may be purchased by visiting USFBullstix.com or calling 1-800-GoBulls. Single game tickets will go on sale at a future date.
The Bulls welcomed 15 new players in head coach Chris Mack's first season at the helm as South Florida returned no players from the 2025-26 squad that went 25-9, reached the NCAA tournament and won an American Conference title (claiming both the regular season and tournament crowns) for the second time in three years. The Bulls reloaded with 12 transfer portal additions and three high school signees. The portal class features four players with a composite rating of .9100 or higher and a four-star rating, according to 247Sports. The Bulls' average transfer rating of 89.00 ranks third among Group of 6 programs, while the overall class ranked among the top 10 nationally among the Group of 6 according to 247Sports.
Follow South Florida Men's Basketball
For the latest updates from South Florida Men's Basketball, visit GoUSFBulls.com.
Follow South Florida men's basketball on Facebook, X, Instagram and Youtube.
Get Your Tickets Today!
Call 1-800-GO-BULLS (1-800-462-8557) or email BullsTickets@usf.edu to claim your season or single-game tickets. You can also download the South Florida Bulls app on the Android or Apple stores to purchase tickets and parking. Visit USFBullsTix.com for more information.
About South Florida Men's Basketball
South Florida men's basketball named Chris Mack as the program's 13th head coach on March 25, 2026. Mack came to Tampa after a pair of 20-win seasons at the College of Charleston. With more than 300 career wins, he brought a career winning percentage of nearly 68 percent to South Florida, including 12 20-win seasons and nine NCAA Tournament appearances. He led both Xavier and Louisville to the NCAA Tournament and made four Sweet 16 appearances and one Elite Eight with Xavier.
The program, entering its 56th season in 2026-27, won American Conference regular season championships in 2024 and 2026 and claimed the conference tournament title in 2026. The Bulls have made 14 postseason appearances, including four NCAA Tournaments (the last in 2026), nine NITs, and a CBI championship in 2019. Three former Bulls players – Chucky Atkins, Charlie Bradley, and Rodenko Dobras – have had their jerseys retired and are members of the USF Athletic Hall of Fame, while two coaches – Amir Abdur-Rahim (2023-24) and Bobby Paschal (1986-96) – join them in the Hall of Fame.
The Bulls play their home games at the 10,400-seat Yuengling Center on the USF Tampa campus.
"It's obviously disappointing for AJ and our team that he won't be able to compete this season," Mack said. "He is a 1,000-point scorer that brings a lot of experience and talent to our roster. He will remain with the team and we'll support him through his surgery and a great rehabilitation of the knee until he can get back on the court and begin practicing again."
The 6-2 guard joined South Florida in April after playing two seasons at Le Moyne College and one at Coastal Carolina. A 32-game starter at Coastal last season, he scored 15.6 points per game and added 5.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Dancler came to USF with 1,122 career points, 356 rebounds and 206 steals, while the career 38.8 percent three-point shooter logged 168 made threes.
The 2026-27 South Florida Basketball Season presented by Tampa General Hospital will tip off on Monday, Nov. 2 vs. Charleston Southern in the Yuengling Center. It will be the first of a 14-game non-conference schedule. Fans first look at a new Bulls team will be an exhibition game on Oct. 19 vs. St. Leo in the Yuengling Center.
Coming off winning American Conference regular season and tournament titles and making the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 14 years last season, the Bull's first season under head coach Chris Mack will feature eight non-conference home games, four road games and two neutral site contests. Highlighting the non-conference opponents will be Alabama (Sat., Dec. 19), which went 25-20 last year, reached the NCAA Sweet 16 and finished No. 14 in the final NET rankings and No. 16 in the Associated Press Poll. The Crimson Tide will come to Tampa as part of a two-for-one series following a thrilling 104-93 win over the Bulls in Tuscaloosa, Ala., last year.
Season tickets for the 2026-27 season may be purchased by visiting USFBullstix.com or calling 1-800-GoBulls. Single game tickets will go on sale at a future date.
The Bulls welcomed 15 new players in head coach Chris Mack's first season at the helm as South Florida returned no players from the 2025-26 squad that went 25-9, reached the NCAA tournament and won an American Conference title (claiming both the regular season and tournament crowns) for the second time in three years. The Bulls reloaded with 12 transfer portal additions and three high school signees. The portal class features four players with a composite rating of .9100 or higher and a four-star rating, according to 247Sports. The Bulls' average transfer rating of 89.00 ranks third among Group of 6 programs, while the overall class ranked among the top 10 nationally among the Group of 6 according to 247Sports.
Follow South Florida Men's Basketball
For the latest updates from South Florida Men's Basketball, visit GoUSFBulls.com.
Follow South Florida men's basketball on Facebook, X, Instagram and Youtube.
Get Your Tickets Today!
Call 1-800-GO-BULLS (1-800-462-8557) or email BullsTickets@usf.edu to claim your season or single-game tickets. You can also download the South Florida Bulls app on the Android or Apple stores to purchase tickets and parking. Visit USFBullsTix.com for more information.
About South Florida Men's Basketball
South Florida men's basketball named Chris Mack as the program's 13th head coach on March 25, 2026. Mack came to Tampa after a pair of 20-win seasons at the College of Charleston. With more than 300 career wins, he brought a career winning percentage of nearly 68 percent to South Florida, including 12 20-win seasons and nine NCAA Tournament appearances. He led both Xavier and Louisville to the NCAA Tournament and made four Sweet 16 appearances and one Elite Eight with Xavier.
The program, entering its 56th season in 2026-27, won American Conference regular season championships in 2024 and 2026 and claimed the conference tournament title in 2026. The Bulls have made 14 postseason appearances, including four NCAA Tournaments (the last in 2026), nine NITs, and a CBI championship in 2019. Three former Bulls players – Chucky Atkins, Charlie Bradley, and Rodenko Dobras – have had their jerseys retired and are members of the USF Athletic Hall of Fame, while two coaches – Amir Abdur-Rahim (2023-24) and Bobby Paschal (1986-96) – join them in the Hall of Fame.
The Bulls play their home games at the 10,400-seat Yuengling Center on the USF Tampa campus.
– #GoBulls –
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballMonday, April 20
Tuesday, April 07
Tuesday, March 31
Tuesday, March 31
