# 2017–18 Youngstown State Penguins men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Youngstown State Penguins men's basketball team represented Youngstown State University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Penguins, led by first-year head coach Jerrod Calhoun, played their home games at the Beeghly Center as members of the Horizon League. They finished the season 8–24, 6–12 in Horizon League play to finish in a tie for eighth place. They lost in the first round of the Horizon League tournament to Cleveland State.

## Previous season

The Penguins finished the 2016–17 season 13–21, 5–13 in Horizon League play to finish in a tie for eighth place. As the No. 9 seed in the Horizon League tournament, they defeated Cleveland State and Oakland before losing to Northern Kentucky in the semifinals.
On March 7, 2017, Jerry Slocum announced he was retiring as head coach at Youngstown State. He had a record of 142–232 in 12 years at the school. On March 27, the school hired Jerrod Calhoun from Division II Fairmont State as the new head coach.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Matt Donlan | 0 | F | 6'7" | 190 | RS Senior | Melbourne, Australia | Graduated |
| Latin Davis | 11 | G | 5'11" | 165 | Sophomore | Ypsilanti, MI | Graduate transferred to Wayne State |
| Noah Dean | 12 | G | 6'4" | 175 | Freshman | Greenville, SC | Walk-on; transferred |
| Tyler Warford | 14 | G | 6'1" | 170 | Senior | Pittsburgh, PA | Walk-on; graduated |
| Brett Frantz | 15 | G | 6'3" | 185 | RS Senior | Lawrence, KS | Graduated |
| Stefan Rosic | 21 | F | 6'7" | 200 | Junior | Kragujevac, Serbia | Graduate transferred to Southeastern Oklahoma State |
| Rahim Williams | 22 | G/F | 6'6" | 190 | Junior | Toronto, ON | Graduate transferred to Shaw |
| Jordan Kaufman | 32 | C | 7'0" | 250 | RS Senior | Andover, KS | Graduated |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Tyree Robinson | 0 | F | 6'4" | 200 | Junior | Fitchburg, MA | Junior college transferred from Odessa College |
| Jaylen Benton | 4 | G | 6'3" | 180 | Senior | Columbus, OH | Transferred from Southeast Missouri State. Will be eligible to play immediately since Benton graduated from Southeast Missouri State. Will join the team as a walk-on. |
| Alex Wilbourn | 13 | C | 6'11" | 205 | Junior | San Diego, CA | Junior college transferred from San Diego City College. |
| Noe Anabir | 21 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Junior | Geneva, Switzerland | Junior college transferred from Mesa CC |
| Devin Morgan | 22 | G | 5'10" | 180 | Junior | Chester, VA | Transferred from Delaware State. Under NCAA transfer rules, Morgan will have to sit out for the 2017–18 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |

### Recruiting class of 2017

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Garrett Covington SG | Carmel, IN | Don Bosco Preparatory School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Apr 15, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Michael Akuchie SF | Fort Lauderdale, FL | St. Thomas Aquinas High School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Apr 25, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Naz Bohannon SF | Lorain, OH | Lorain High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Apr 18, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Jacob Brown PF | Clemmons, NC | Forest Trails Academy | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Apr 15, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| 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: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 28, 2017. ||||||

### Recruiting class of 2018

US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Darius Quisenberry PG | Dayton, OH | Wayne High School | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Sep 19, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR |||||||
| Jelani Simmons SG/SF | Columbus, OH | Beechcroft High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Aug 2, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: NR |||||||
| 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: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 28, 2017. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition ||||||
| Oct 24, 2017* 7:30 pm | | Thiel | W 106–74 | | Beeghly Center Youngstown, OH |
| Non-Conference regular season ||||||
| Nov 11, 2017* 9:00 pm, ESPN3 | | vs. Kent State Northeast Ohio Coaches vs Cancer Doubleheader | L 78–111 | 0–1 | James A. Rhodes Arena (2,434) Akron, OH |
| Nov 14, 2017* 7:30 pm, ESPN3 | | Franciscan | W 134–46 | 1–1 | Beeghly Center (4,104) Youngstown, OH |
| Nov 18, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Canisius | L 84–104 | 1–2 | Koessler Athletic Center (1,245) Buffalo, NY |
| Nov 21, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Westminster (PA) Sanford Pentagon Showcase | W 91–83 | 2–2 | Beeghly Center (2,283) Youngstown, OH |
| Nov 24, 2017* 9:00 pm | | vs. Northern Colorado Sanford Pentagon Showcase | L 67–80 | 2–3 | Sanford Pentagon (1,105) Sioux Falls, SD |
| Nov 25, 2017* 5:00 pm | | vs. Southern Miss Sanford Pentagon Showcase | W 71–64 | 2–4 | Sanford Pentagon (343) Sioux Falls, SD |
| Nov 26, 2017* 3:00 pm | | vs. South Dakota Sanford Pentagon Showcase | L 53–81 | 2–5 | Sanford Pentagon (467) Sioux Falls, SD |
| Nov 29, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Robert Morris | L 74–81 | 2–6 | Beeghly Center (1,786) Youngstown, OH |
| Dec 2, 2017* 2:00 pm, FSN | | at DePaul | L 73–89 | 2–7 | Wintrust Arena (4,732) Chicago, IL |
| Dec 9, 2017* 12:00 pm, FSN | | at Butler | L 67–95 | 2–8 | Hinkle Fieldhouse (8,022) Indianapolis, IN |
| Dec 18, 2017* 8:00 pm | | at Idaho State | L 62–86 | 2–9 | Holt Arena (1,464) Pocatello, ID |
| Dec 20, 2017* 8:00 pm | | at Utah State | L 74–91 | 2–10 | Smith Spectrum (6,054) Logan, UT |
| Dec 29, 2017* 8:00 pm, BTN | | at Indiana | L 51–79 | 2–11 | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (14,122) Bloomington, IN |
| Horizon League regular season ||||||
| Jan 1, 2018 1:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Cleveland State | W 80–77 | 3–11 (1–0) | Wolstein Center (1,221) Cleveland, OH |
| Jan 4, 2018 7:30 pm, ESPN3 | | Milwaukee | W 72–63 | 4–11 (2–0) | Beeghly Center (1,484) Youngstown, OH |
| Jan 6, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Green Bay | W 85–74 | 5–11 (3–0) | Beeghly Center (4,470) Youngstown, OH |
| Jan 10, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Oakland | L 82–95 | 5–12 (3–1) | Athletics Center O'rena (2,657) Rochester, MI |
| Jan 12, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Detroit | L 91–93 | 5–13 (3–2) | Calihan Hall (1,154) Detroit, MI |
| Jan 15, 2018 4:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Wright State | L 67–77 | 5–14 (3–3) | Nutter Center (4,409) Fairborn, OH |
| Jan 18, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | UIC | L 78–92 | 5–15 (3–4) | Beeghly Center (1,686) Youngstown, OH |
| Jan 20, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | IUPUI | W 85–62 | 6–15 (4–4) | Beeghly Center (3,222) Youngstown, OH |
| Jan 25, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Milwaukee | L 55–66 | 6–16 (4–5) | UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena (1,677) Milwaukee, WI |
| Jan 27, 2018 4:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Green Bay | L 67–85 | 6–17 (4–6) | Resch Center (2,992) Green Bay, WI |
| Feb 1, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Northern Kentucky | L 85–95 | 6–18 (4–7) | Beeghly Center (1,391) Youngstown, OH |
| Feb 3, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Wright State | L 57–83 | 6–19 (4–8) | Beeghly Center (5,371) Youngstown, OH |
| Feb 8, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at UIC | L 75–100 | 6–20 (4–9) | UIC Pavilion (2,033) Chicago, IL |
| Feb 10, 2018 1:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at IUPUI | W 84–80 | 7–20 (5–9) | Indiana Farmers Coliseum (905) Indianapolis, IN |
| Feb 14, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Oakland | W 75–73 | 8–20 (6–9) | Beeghly Center (1,513) Youngstown, OH |
| Feb 16, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Detroit | L 84–94 | 8–21 (6–10) | Beeghly Center (3,137) Youngstown, OH |
| Feb 19, 2018 7:30 pm, ESPN3 | | at Northern Kentucky | L 51–70 | 8–22 (6–11) | BB&T Arena (4,001) Highland Heights, KY |
| Feb 24, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Cleveland State | L 94–99 $^{2OT}$ | 8–23 (6–12) | Beeghly Center (5,483) Youngstown, OH |
| Horizon League tournament ||||||
| Mar 2, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN3 | (9) | vs. (8) Cleveland State First round | L 71–72 | 8–24 | Little Caesars Arena (4,248) Detroit, MI |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time Source. ||||||