2017–18 American Athletic Conference men's basketball season
2017–18 American Athletic Conference men's basketball season | |
---|---|
League | NCAA Division I |
Sport | Basketball |
Duration | November 2017 through March 2018 |
Number of teams | 12 |
TV partner(s) | ESPN, CBS |
Regular season | |
Season champions | Cincinnati |
Season MVP | Gary Clark, Cincinnati |
Tournament | |
Champions | Cincinnati |
Runners-up | Houston |
Finals MVP | Gary Clark, Cincinnati |
American Athletic Conference men's basketball seasons | |
2018–19 → |
| Conf | Overall | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 6 Cincinnati † | 16 | – | 2 | .889 | 31 | – | 5 | .861 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 21 Houston | 14 | – | 4 | .778 | 27 | – | 8 | .771 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 16 Wichita State | 14 | – | 4 | .778 | 25 | – | 8 | .758 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tulsa | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 19 | – | 12 | .613 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Memphis | 10 | – | 8 | .556 | 21 | – | 13 | .618 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
UCF | 9 | – | 9 | .500 | 19 | – | 13 | .594 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Temple | 8 | – | 10 | .444 | 17 | – | 16 | .515 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
UConn | 7 | – | 11 | .389 | 14 | – | 18 | .438 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SMU | 6 | – | 12 | .333 | 17 | – | 16 | .515 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tulane | 5 | – | 13 | .278 | 14 | – | 17 | .452 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
East Carolina | 4 | – | 14 | .222 | 10 | – | 20 | .333 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
South Florida | 3 | – | 15 | .167 | 10 | – | 22 | .313 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
† 2018 AAC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll |
The 2017–18 American Athletic Conference men's basketball season began with practices in October 2017 followed by the start of the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season in November. The conference held its media day in October 2017. Conference play begin in December 2017 and concluded on March 3, 2018.
Cincinnati won the regular season championship by two games over Houston and Wichita State. The American Athletic tournament was held at the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida from March 8–11, 2018.[1][2][3] Cincinnati also won the AAC tournament championship, defeating Houston in the championship game.
Cincinnati's Gary Clark was named the AAC player of the year while Houston's Kelvin Sampson was named coach of the year.
Cincinnati, Houston, and Wichita State all received bids to the NCAA tournament, but none made it past the Second Round as the conference went 2–3 in the Tournament.
Temple received a bid to the National Invitation Tournament, but lost in the first round.
The season marked the first season with Wichita State as a member of the AAC, having joined on July 1, 2017.[4][5] As a result, the conference included 12 teams for the first time.[6]
Head coaches
Coaching changes
South Florida head coach Orlando Antigua was fired after the first 13 games of the 2016–17 season amid academic fraud allegations.[7][8] Interim head coach Murry Bartow coach was not retained by the school following the season. On March 14, 2017, the school hired Brian Gregory as the next head coach.[9]
Coaches
Team | Head coach | Previous job | Years at school | Overall record | AAC record | AAC titles | NCAA tournaments | NCAA Final Fours | NCAA Championships |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cincinnati | Mick Cronin | Murray State | 12 | 268–140 | 72–18 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
Connecticut | Kevin Ollie | Connecticut (asst.) | 6 | 127–79 | 49–41 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
East Carolina | Jeff Lebo | Auburn | 8 | 124–138 | 20–52 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Houston | Kelvin Sampson | Houston Rockets (asst.) | 4 | 81–48 | 42–32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Memphis | Tubby Smith | Texas Tech | 2 | 38–26 | 19–17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
SMU | Tim Jankovich | SMU (asst.) | 3 | 58–21 | 23–13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
South Florida | Brian Gregory | Michigan State (advisor) | 1 | 10–22 | 3–15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Temple | Fran Dunphy | Penn | 12 | 247–152 | 46–44 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
Tulane | Mike Dunleavy | Los Angeles Clippers | 2 | 20–42 | 8–28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Tulsa | Frank Haith | Missouri | 4 | 77–52 | 46–26 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
UCF | Johnny Dawkins | Stanford | 2 | 43–25 | 20–16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Wichita State | Gregg Marshall | Winthrop | 11 | 286–98 | 14–4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
Notes:
- Overall and AAC records are from time at current school and are through the end of 2017–18 season. NCAA records include time at current school only.
- AAC records are only from 2013–14 season to present, prior conference records not included.
Preseason
Preseason Coaches Poll
AAC Media Day took place October 15, 2017, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Cincinnati was picked to win the conference's regular season (seven votes) with Wichita State a close second (five votes).[10]
Rank | Team |
---|---|
1. | Cincinnati (7) |
2. | Wichita State (5) |
3. | UCF |
4. | SMU |
5. | Connecticut |
6. | Houston |
7. | Temple |
8. | Tulsa |
9. | Memphis |
10. | Tulane |
11. | East Carolina |
12. | USF |
first place votes in parentheses
Preseason All-AAC teams
Honor | Recipient |
---|---|
Preseason Player of the Year | Shake Milton, SMU |
Preseason All-AAC First Team | |
Shake Milton, SMU | |
Jalen Adams, Connecticut | |
Rob Gray, Houston | |
Landry Shamet, Wichita State | |
B. J. Taylor, UCF | |
Preseason All-AAC Second Team | |
Gary Clark, Cincinnati | |
Junior Etou, Tulsa | |
Jacob Evans, Cincinnati | |
Tacko Fall, UCF | |
Kyle Washington, Cincinnati | |
Preseason Rookie of the Year | Alterique Gilbert, Connecticut |
Regular season
Rankings
Increase in ranking | ||
Decrease in ranking | ||
Not ranked previous week |
Pre | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Wk 15 | Wk 16 | Wk 17 | Wk 18 | Wk 19 | Final | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cincinnati | AP | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 17 | 25 | 20 | 21 | 19 | 14 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 6 | |
C | 13 | 13 | 13 | 9 | 17 | RV | 22 | 22 | 20 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 12 | |
Connecticut | AP | ||||||||||||||||||||
C | |||||||||||||||||||||
East Carolina | AP | ||||||||||||||||||||
C | |||||||||||||||||||||
Houston | AP | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 23 | 25 | 21 | 21 | |||||||||||
C | RV | RV | RV | RV | 23 | RV | 21 | 19 | 22 | ||||||||||||
Memphis | AP | ||||||||||||||||||||
C | |||||||||||||||||||||
SMU | AP | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | ||||||||||||||
C | RV | RV | RV | RV | |||||||||||||||||
South Florida | AP | ||||||||||||||||||||
C | |||||||||||||||||||||
Temple | AP | RV | |||||||||||||||||||
C | RV | ||||||||||||||||||||
Tulane | AP | ||||||||||||||||||||
C | |||||||||||||||||||||
Tulsa | AP | ||||||||||||||||||||
C | |||||||||||||||||||||
UCF | AP | RV | |||||||||||||||||||
C | |||||||||||||||||||||
Wichita State | AP | 7 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 17 | 16 | 22 | 19 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 16 | |
C | 8 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 12 | 11 | 14 | 16 | 25 |
Conference matrix
Cincinnati | Connecticut | East Carolina | Houston | Memphis | SMU | South Florida | Temple | Tulane | Tulsa | UCF | Wichita State | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
vs. Cincinnati | — | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 |
vs. Connecticut | 2–0 | — | 0–2 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 |
vs. East Carolina | 1–0 | 2–0 | — | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
vs. Houston | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | — | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 |
vs. Memphis | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | — | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 |
vs. SMU | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | — | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 |
vs. South Florida | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 |
vs. Temple | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | — | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 |
vs. Tulane | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | — | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 |
vs. Tulsa | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0– | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–2 | — | 0–1 | 2–0 |
vs. UCF | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | — | 1–0 |
vs. Wichita State | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | — |
Total | 14–2 | 6–10 | 4–12 | 12–4 | 9–7 | 6–10 | 1–15 | 8–8 | 5–11 | 10–6 | 8–8 | 13–3 |
Player of the week
Throughout the regular season, the American Athletic Conference named a player and rookie of the week.
Week | Player(s) of the week | Rookie of the week |
---|---|---|
November 13, 2017[11] | Shake Milton, SMU | Ethan Chargois, SMU |
November 20, 2017[12] | Melvin Frazier, Tulane | Ceasar DeJesus, UCF |
November 27, 2017[13] | Gary Clark, Cincinnati | Fabian White Jr., Houston |
December 4, 2017[14] | Shake Milton (2), SMU | Shawn Williams, ECU |
December 11, 2017[15] | Landry Shamet, Wichita State | Jamal Johnson, Memphis |
December 18, 2017[16] | Jacob Evans, Cincinnati | Ethan Chargois (2), SMU |
December 26, 2017[17] | Tacko Fall, UCF | David Nickelberry, Memphis |
January 2, 2018[18] | Junior Etou, Tulsa | Ceasar DeJesus (2), UCF |
January 8, 2018[19] | Jacob Evans (2), Cincinnati | Ceasar DeJesus (3), UCF |
January 15, 2018[20] | Jeremiah Martin, Memphis | Nate Pierre-Louis, Temple |
January 22, 2018[21] | Shake Milton (3), SMU Gary Clark (2), Cincinnati | Shawn Williams (2), ECU |
January 29, 2018[22] | Gary Clark (3), Cincinnati | Fabian White Jr. (2), Houston |
February 5, 2018[23] | Junior Etou (2), Tulsa | Shawn Williams (3), ECU |
February 12, 2018[24] | Armoni Brooks, Houston | J. P. Moorman II, Temple |
February 19, 2018[25] | Shaquille Morris, Wichita State | Shawn Williams (4), ECU |
February 26, 2018[26] | Raynere Thornton, Memphis | Caleb Daniels, Tulane |
March 5, 2018[27] | Rob Gray, Houston | David Collins, USF |
Honors and awards
All-AAC Awards and teams
Honor | Recipient |
---|---|
Player of the Year | Gary Clark, Cincinnati |
Coach of the Year | Kelvin Sampson, Houston |
Scholar-Athlete of the Year | Obi Enechionyia, Temple |
Rookie of the Year | Shawn Williams, East Carolina |
Defensive Player of the Year | Gary Clark, Cincinnati |
Most Improved Player | Melvin Frazier, Tulane |
Sixth Man of the Year | Armoni Brooks, Houston |
Sportsmanship Award | Gary Clark, Cincinnati |
All-AAC First Team | |
Gary Clark, Cincinnati* | |
Jacob Evans, Cincinnati | |
Rob Gray, Houston | |
Landry Shamet, Wichita State | |
Shaquille Morris, Wichita State | |
All-AAC Second Team | |
Jalen Adams, Connecticut | |
Junior Etou, Tulsa | |
Melvin Frazier, Tulane | |
Jeremiah Martin, Memphis | |
Shake Milton, SMU | |
All-AAC Honorable Mention | |
A. J. Davis, UCF | |
Quinton Rose, Temple | |
Kyle Washington, Cincinnati | |
All-Rookie Team | |
Ethan Chargois, F, SMU | |
David Collins, G, USF | |
Nate Pierre-Louis, G, Temple | |
Fabian White Jr., F, Houston | |
Shawn Williams, G, ECU* |
* Unanimous Selection
Postseason
American Athletic Conference tournament
[28]
First round Thursday, March 8 | Quarterfinals Friday, March 9 | Semifinals Saturday, March 10 | Championship Sunday, March 11 | ||||||||||||||||
1 | Cincinnati | 61 | |||||||||||||||||
9 | SMU | 51 | |||||||||||||||||
8 | UConn | 73 | |||||||||||||||||
9 | SMU | 80 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Cincinnati | 70 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Memphis | 60 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Tulsa | 64 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Memphis | 67 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Memphis | 79 | |||||||||||||||||
12 | South Florida | 77 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Cincinnati | 56 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Houston | 55 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Wichita State | 89 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Temple | 81 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Temple | 82 | |||||||||||||||||
10 | Tulane | 77 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Wichita State | 74 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Houston | 77 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Houston | 84 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | UCF | 56 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | UCF | 66 | |||||||||||||||||
11 | East Carolina | 52 |
NCAA tournament
The winner of the AAC tournament, Cincinnati, received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Seed | Region | School | First Four | First round | Second round | Sweet Sixteen | Elite Eight | Final Four | Championship |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 | South | Cincinnati | N/A | defeated (15) Georgia State 68–53 | eliminated by (7) Nevada 73–75 | ||||
4 | East | Wichita State | N/A | eliminated by (13) Marshall 75–81 | |||||
6 | West | Houston | N/A | defeated (11) San Diego State 67–65 | eliminated by (3) Michigan 63–64 | ||||
W–L (%): | 0–0 (–) | 2–1 (.667) | 0–2 (.000) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) Total: 2–3 (.400) |
NIT
Temple received an at-large bid to the NIT.
Seed | Bracket | School | First round | Second round | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
5 | Notre Dame | Temple | eliminated by (4) Penn State 57–63 | ||||
W–L (%): | 0–1 (.000) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) | 0–0 (–) Total: 0–1 (.000) |
NBA draft
The following list includes all AAC players who were drafted in the 2018 NBA draft.
Player | Position | School | Round | Pick | Team |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Landry Shamet | PG | Wichita State | 1 | 26 | Philadelphia 76ers |
Jacob Evans | SG | Cincinnati | 1 | 28 | Golden State Warriors |
Melvin Frazier | SF | Tulane | 2 | 35 | Orlando Magic |
Shake Milton | PG | SMU | 2 | 54 | Dallas Mavericks |
References
- ^ "American Men's Basketball Semifinals, Championship to be Broadcast on CBS in 2018". theamerican.org. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
- ^ "Hartford's XL Center Set to Host 2017 American Men's Basketball Championship". theamerican.org. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
- ^ Funschelle, Aliyah. "The Sunflower : CBS Sports to broadcast 2018 AAC men's basketball semifinals and championship". thesunflower.com. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
- ^ "AAC votes to add Wichita St. for '17-18 season". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
- ^ "Wichita State joining American Athletic Conference from Missouri Valley". USA TODAY. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
- ^ "What Wichita State's conference move means for the AAC, Missouri Valley". USA TODAY. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
- ^ "Struggling South Florida fires coach Antigua". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
- ^ "South Florida fires Orlando Antigua amid academic fraud investigation". UPI. Retrieved January 16, 2017.
- ^ "South Florida hires Brian Gregory as head coach". USA TODAY. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
- ^ "Cincinnati Selected as 2017–18 American Men's Basketball Preseason Favorite" (Press release). American Athletic. October 16, 2017. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
- ^ "SMU's Milton, Chargois Collect Initial Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Frazier, DeJesus Earn Men's Basketball Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Clark, White Jr. Earn Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Milton, Williams Collect Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Shamet, Johnson Take Home Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Cincinnati's Evans, SMU's Chargois Earn Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "UCF's Fall, Memphis' Nickelberry Earn Weekly Awards". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Tulsa's Etou, UCF's DeJesus Collect Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Cincinnati's Evans, UCF's DeJesus Collect Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Memphis' Martin, Temple's Pierre-Louis Earn Weekly Accolades". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "SMU's Milton Cincinnati's Clark, ECU's Williams Earn Weekly Accolades". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Cincinnati's Clark, Houston's White Jr. Earn Weekly Honors". Retrieved January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Etou, Williams Snare Weekly Honors". Retrieved February 23, 2018.
- ^ "Houston's Brooks, Temple's Moorman II Earn Weekly Accolades". Retrieved February 23, 2018.
- ^ "Wichita State's Morris, ECU's Williams Collect Weekly Honors". Retrieved February 23, 2018.
- ^ "American Athletic Conference - Memphis' Thornton, Tulane's Daniels Collect Weekly Awards". theamerican.org. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
- ^ "Houston's Gray, USF's Collins Collect Final Men's Basketball Weekly Honors". theamerican.org. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
- ^ "2018 Aaron's American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship" (PDF). American Athletic Conference. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 19, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2022.