# 2024–25 South Florida Bulls men's basketball team

The 2024–25 South Florida Bulls men's basketball team represented the University of South Florida during the 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The season marked the 53rd basketball season for USF, and the 12th as a member of the American Athletic Conference. The Bulls played their home games at Yuengling Center on the university's Tampa, Florida campus. They were led by interim head coach Ben Fletcher after head coach Amir Abdur-Rahim passed away on October 24, 2024 at the age of 43.

## Previous season

The Bulls finished the 2023–24 season 25–8, 16–2 in AAC play to win the AAC championship. They defeated East Carolina in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament before losing to UAB in the semifinals. They received at large bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated UCF in the first round before losing to VCU in the second round.
In the Week 14 poll on February 12, 2024, USF received five votes in the Coaches Poll (unofficially ranking them 40th), marking the first time since the final poll of the 2011–12 season in which USF has received votes in the Coaches Poll. In addition, the school also received seven votes in the AP poll (unofficially ranking them 43rd), also marking the first time the school received votes in both polls in the same week, along with only the third time the school received votes in the AP poll, after receiving 58 in the Week 6 poll in 1991–92 and two in the Week 13 poll in 2009–10. The following week (Week 15), the school set a record for most votes received in the Coaches Poll, receiving 45 in AP and 35 in Coaches (unofficially ranking them 31st and 29th, respectively).
In their February 18 win against No. 24 Florida Atlantic, USF set a new attendance record with 10,659 fans packing the Yuengling Center.
On February 25 after their win against SMU combined with losses by Charlotte and Florida Atlantic that weekend, USF clinched at least a share of the conference regular season title for the first time in school history. On March 2, they would clinch the outright title with their win over Charlotte.
In the Week 16 poll on February 26, 2024, USF was ranked No. 25 in both the AP and Coaches polls, marking the first time in school history the team was officially ranked in either poll.
The Bulls were ranked No. 24 in both the AP and Coaches polls during week 17. After a loss to Tulsa in the final game of the season, USF would drop out of the AP Top 25 for week 18; however, they would receive votes, unofficially ranking them 27th in the nation. That loss would also snap the Bulls program record setting 15-game win streak.
On March 15, Amir Abdur-Rahim was named a Naismith College Coach of the Year semifinalist. Two days later, the Bulls were given a berth in the National Invitation Tournament, their first postseason berth since 2018–19. They beat rival Central Florida in the first round their 25th win of the season setting a new program record before losing to VCU in the second round, ending their season.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Selton Miguel | 1 | G/F | 6'4" | 210 | Junior | Luanda, Angola | Transferred to Maryland |
| Jose Placer | 2 | G | 6'1" | 184 | Senior | Orlando, FL | Graduated |
| Chris Youngblood | 3 | G | 6'4" | 218 | Senior | Tuscaloosa, AL | Graduate transferred to Alabama |
| Kasean Pryor | 11 | F | 6'10" | 200 | Junior | Chicago, IL | Transferred to Louisville |
| Ammaar Balagam | 14 | G | 6'4" | 185 | Freshman | Tucker, GA | Walk-on; left the team due to personal reasons |
| Sam Hines Jr. | 20 | F | 6'6" | 215 | Junior | Marietta, GA | Transferred to Southeastern Louisiana |
| Gerald Jones III | 21 | F | 6'10" | 220 | Sophomore | Wolfeboro, NH | Transferred to Chicago State |
| David Ogunleye | 22 | F | 6'9" | 235 | Junior | Houston, TX | Transferred |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Num | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| De'Ante Green | 1 | F | 6'9" | 210 | Junior | Ashville, NC | Florida State |
| Jamille Reynolds | 2 | F | 6' 11" | 275 | GS Senior | St. Petersburg, FL | Cincinnati |
| Jimmie Williams | 3 | G | 6'5" | | Sophomore | Euclid, OH | Wallace State CC |
| Kyle O'Hare | 22 | F | 6'7" | 205 | Sophomore | Tampa, FL | Walk-on; Husson |
| Quincy Ademokoya | 23 | G | 6'6" | 170 | GS Senior | Bloomington, IL | Kennesaw State |
| Jaylen Wharton | 24 | F | 6'9" | | Junior | Plant City, FL | Walters State CC |

### Recruiting classes
#### 2024 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| C.J. Brown #44 PG | Marietta, GA | Kell High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Nov 8, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 80 ||||||
| Kameren Wright #67 SF | Gainesville, FL | The Rock School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | May 1, 2024 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 ||||||
| 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: "2024 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 15, 2024. ||||||

#### 2025 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2025) :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Josh Lewis #20 SF | Tampa, FL | Howard W. Blake High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Nov 8, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 84 |||||||
| 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: "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 15, 2024. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 30, 2024* 7:00 p.m. | | Edward Waters | W 94–51 | | – | – | – | Yuengling Center Tampa, FL |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 4, 2024* 8:30 p.m., SECN | | vs. No. 21 Florida Jacksonville Sports Foundation Invitational | L 83–98 | 0–1 | 17 – Reynolds | 6 – Tied | 4 – Reid | VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena (5,764) Jacksonville, FL |
| November 8, 2024* 7:00 p.m., FloSports | | at Charleston | L 71–86 | 0–2 | 14 – Tied | 9 – Stroud | 4 – Jennings | TD Arena (5,457) Charleston, SC |
| November 12, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Arkansas–Pine Bluff | W 85–69 | 1–2 | 16 – Tied | 14 – Green | 6 – Reid | Yuengling Center (4,404) Tampa, FL |
| November 15, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | West Georgia | W 74–55 | 2–2 | 14 – Williams | 11 – Reynolds | 4 – Tied | Yuengling Center (4,411) Tampa, FL |
| November 21, 2024* 2:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Portland Myrtle Beach Invitational Quarterfinals | W 74–68 | 3–2 | 13 – Knox | 6 – Tied | 4 – Stroud | HTC Center (1,454) Conway, SC |
| November 22, 2024* 2:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Middle Tennessee Myrtle Beach Invitational Semifinals | L 88–95 | 3–3 | 18 – Reid | 9 – Reynolds | 4 – Reid | HTC Center (1,428) Conway, SC |
| November 24, 2024* 1:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Wright State Myrtle Beach Invitational 3rd place game | W 73–72 | 4–3 | 14 – Reid | 14 – Reynolds | 4 – Stroud | HTC Center (1,265) Conway, SC |
| December 2, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Stetson | W 74–72 | 5–3 | 23 – Reid | 9 – Reynolds | 8 – Reid | Yuengling Center (3,408) Tampa, FL |
| December 7, 2024* 12:30 p.m., USA | | at Loyola Chicago | L 72–74 | 5–4 | 23 – Reid | 11 – Reynolds | 4 – Tied | Joseph J. Gentile Arena (3,124) Chicago, IL |
| December 14, 2024* 4:00 p.m., Mountain West Network | | at Utah State | L 67–88 | 5–5 | 12 – Ademokoya | 6 – Reynolds | 5 – Jennings | Smith Spectrum (7,644) Logan, UT |
| December 18, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Bethune–Cookman | L 69–77 | 5–6 | 15 – Reynolds | 6 – Tied | 4 – Reid | Yuengling Center (3,748) Tampa, FL |
| December 21, 2024* 4:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | East Texas A&M | W 88–62 | 6–6 | 19 – Knox | 6 – Tied | 10 – Reid | Yuengling Center (5,735) Tampa, FL |
| December 28, 2024* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Webber International | W 106–49 | 7–6 | 16 – Stroud | 8 – Green | 6 – Williams | Yuengling Center (3,309) Tampa, FL |
| AAC regular season |||||||||
| December 31, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | East Carolina | W 75–69 | 8–6 (1–0) | 18 – Knox | 11 – Reynolds | 3 – Williams | Yuengling Center (3,265) Tampa, FL |
| January 6, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Wichita State | W 91–72 | 9–6 (2–0) | 22 – Reynolds | 10 – Reynolds | 5 – Reid | Charles Koch Arena (54,69) Wichita, KS |
| January 11, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Tulane | L 70–73 | 9–7 (2–1) | 19 – Reynolds | 6 – Brown | 6 – Brown | Devlin Fieldhouse (1,281) New Orleans, LA |
| January 15, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | UAB | L 83–92 | 9–8 (2–2) | 26 – Reid | 5 – Tied | 4 – Tied | Yuengling Center (4,572) Tampa, FL |
| January 18, 2025 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Tulsa | W 63–56 | 10–8 (3–2) | 16 – Brown | 8 – Green | 2 – Tied | Yuengling Center (8,636) Tampa, FL |
| January 22, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Charlotte | L 61–69 | 10–9 (3–3) | 14 – Reid | 7 – Stroud | 2 – Tied | Dale F. Halton Arena (2,707) Charlotte, NC |
| January 25, 2025 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at East Carolina | L 55–64 | 10–10 (3–4) | 17 – Knox | 8 – Williams | 4 – Tied | Williams Arena (4,701) Greenville, NC |
| January 28, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | Rice | W 69–64 | 11–10 (4–4) | 17 – Jennings | 12 – Ademokoya | 3 – Reid | Yuengling Center (4,238) Tampa, FL |
| February 2, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Florida Atlantic | L 72–94 | 11–11 (4–5) | 15 – Tied | 10 – Reynolds | 4 – Reid | Eleanor R. Baldwin Arena (3,161) Boca Raton, FL |
| February 6, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | Temple | W 100–91 $^{2OT}$ | 12–11 (5–5) | 25 – Reynolds | 12 – Reynolds | 10 – Brown | Yuengling Center (3,729) Tampa, FL |
| February 9, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Wichita State | L 70–75 | 12–12 (5–6) | 18 – Reynolds | 6 – Reynolds | 6 – Brown | Yuengling Center (3,730) Tampa, FL |
| February 13, 2025 9:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | No. 14 Memphis | L 65–80 | 12–13 (5–7) | 11 – Tied | 8 – Reynolds | 3 – Tied | Yuengling Center (5,059) Tampa, FL |
| February 16, 2025 4:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at UAB | L 78–85 | 12–14 (5–8) | 27 – Reynolds | 14 – Reynolds | 5 – Brown | Bartow Arena (5,313) Birmingham, AL |
| February 19, 2025 8:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at UTSA | W 78–73 | 13–14 (6–8) | 16 – Williams | 17 – Stroud | 3 – Tied | Convocation Center (1,234) San Antonio, TX |
| February 23, 2025 12:00 p.m., ESPNU | | North Texas | L 57–64 | 13–15 (6–9) | 20 – Stroud | 11 – Reynolds | 6 – Stroud | Yuengling Center (4,303) Tampa, FL |
| February 26, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Temple | L 71–73 | 13–16 (6–10) | 17 – Reynolds | 6 – Reynolds | 3 – Tied | Liacouras Center (3,311) Philadelphia, PA |
| March 2, 2025 12:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | Florida Atlantic | L 63–69 | 13–17 (6–11) | 16 – Reid | 10 – Stroud | 4 – Tied | Yuengling Center (4,504) Tampa, FL |
| March 7, 2025 9:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at No. 16 Memphis | L 68–84 | 13–18 (6–12) | 20 – Reid | 13 – Stroud | 4 – Brown | FedExForum (14,916) Memphis, TN |
| AAC tournament |||||||||
| March 13, 2025 12:30 p.m., ESPNU | (9) | vs. (8) Wichita State Second Round | L 68–73 | 13–19 | 19 – Reid | 9 – Knox | 3 – Reid | Dickies Arena Fort Worth, TX |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Source