Year two under head coach Kyle Smith provided the Don faithful with more examples of good things to come on the Hilltop.  The future remains bright for the men's basketball program.
 
"I think you always want to improve year-over-year," said Smith. "Sometimes you might lose a lot of guys, might have to reset the table. That wasn't the case for us. We only lost Ronnie (Boyce) from last year's team, we thought we were in a good shape to take another step forward. In a lot of respects, we did. We had to offset not having Charles, which caused us to readjust and thrust some young guys in prominent roles. Ultimately, to improve on our win total, to finish fourth in the WCC, to advance in the WCC Tournament, advance in a postseason tournament and almost win one, we showed great signs of improvement in this young group."
 
For the first time since the 1981 and '82 seasons, the Dons posted back-to-back 20-win seasons. The 22 wins this season were the most since 1985, at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center the Dons went 16-6 the most wins since 1985. USF advanced to the finals of the College Basketball Invitational and were one win away from becoming the first NCAA Division I program to win three different postseason titles in three different postseason tournaments. 
 
USF did all of this while sporting a young roster loaded with potential and missing one of its most exciting players.  Sophomore Charles Minlend, USF's only preseason All-WCC pick, redshirted this season due to an offseason shoulder injury.  Without him, the Dons relied heavily on returners Frankie Ferrari, Chase Foster, Jordan Ratinho and newcomer Souley Boum, who combined to score 1,630 points out of a total of 2,685. 
 
The first month and a half of the season provided the Dons with plenty to be excited about.  USF opened the year 8-5 in its nonconference slate and captured the Continental Tires Last Vegas Classic following a thrilling 66-64 win over Nevada (a Sweet-16 team) in the championship game. The win over the Wolf Pack gave the Dons arguably their biggest win of the season. USF's elder statesmen of Foster, Matt McCarthy and Nate Renfro all earned all-tournament team honors, with McCarthy being named the tournament MVP. 
 
USF went 2-5 in their first few WCC games, but the return of a healthy Chase Foster and a solidified starting rotation helped the Dons turn the year around. Led by starters Ferrari, Foster, McCarthy, Ratinho and Renfro, USF prospered, going 10-4 down the stretch of the conference campaign. Their run included two season-defining wins over No. 15 Saint Mary's and Pacific in the first round of the WCC Tournament. It was capped off by a journey all the way to the championship round of the College Basketball Invitational, a best-of-three series.
 
"Frankie getting more confident and getting more comfortable and us making the commitment to him to run the team, while also finding a way to utilize Nate and Jordan's defensive tenacity, really helped us keep Frankie out on the floor.  Chase was hurt early in that stretch, he played hurt the whole year, when he came back he didn't do anything eye popping, but he brought a wealth of experience and I think it kind of brought that group together and that was our best team, our most competitive team."
 
With that rotation in place and confidence from the coaching staff, Ferrari thrived. The junior from Burlingame took complete control of the team. He finished the season earning First Team All-WCC honors while scoring 446 points and dishing out 179 assists. He became just the third player in program history to score 400 or more points and recorded 150 or more assists in a single season.
 
Joining him in that group was sophomore Ratinho. The brilliant 3-point shooter tied former Don M.J. Nodilo (1993-98) for eighth all-time with 141 made 3-point field goals. Ratinho shattered the single-season record for made threes with 86. However, it was his defense down the stretch that helped USF advance to the CBI Finals, locking down dynamic scorers such as Campbell's Chris Clemson, the nation's fourth leading scorer.
 
Junior McCarthy was another big reason for the Dons rise towards the end of the season.  The product of Australia finished with career-best numbers in points (303), rebounds (213) and minutes played (847). He was a force in the CBI, recording three double-doubles in the tournament. 
 
Renfro, a fellow junior, was known for his spectacular above the rim dunks as well as his punishing blocks. It was a block against the Gaels' Second Team All-American center Jock Landale that essentially sealed the win for the Dons, their first victory over a top-25 team since 2012. Renfro joins Ferrari and Ratinho as the only players to play in all 39 games, a new USF single-season record. In the 2017-18 finale, Renfro recorded his first career double-double with a career-high 18 points and 11 rebounds.   
 
Foster, the Don's lone senior ends his career on a high note, helping guide USF to the championship round of the CBI. He finished his career on the Hilltop with 855 points, 708 of those came in the last two seasons and was the catalyst for the Dons reaching 20 wins in back-to-back years for the first time in 36 seasons. His senior season saw him posting career-best numbers in almost every statistical category. The four-year letterwinner played in 108 games, 36 coming this season. He wraps up his career with 136 made 3-point field goals, 10^th all-time.
 
The Dons also have a solid young core to look forward to. Boum, an Oakland native, finished the year with 394 points, second on the team and second all-time by a freshman. He also set the record for free throws made by a freshman with 121. Boum was named to the WCC All-Freshman team and finished the year with seven 20-point games, including a 26-point performance against Colgate in the opening round of the CBI. Fellow freshman Jamaree Bouyea and Taavi Jurkatamm also have bright futures ahead. Bouyea played in 36 games, making 10 starts as a true freshman, while Jurkatamm played in 31.
 
"Obviously Souley earned all-freshman team honors and was a dynamic scorer for us and finished near the top on our team with limited minutes. To do that as a true freshman is really impressive. Jamaree started 10 games for us, I think he's got a bright future ahead of him. Both those guys getting stronger and tougher moving forward with another year will give us a big boost. Their contributions this year were totally unexpected, we even got great minutes out of Taavi, who I think's going to be an heir apparent in the same role that Nate has now – a dynamic forward that can really lock down guys and make plays. He really has a great attitude and work ethic. I think that group moving through the program provides us a bright future."
 
Under Smith, the third winningest coach in program history in his first seasons on the Hilltop, the future is bright. The Dons return a loaded, experienced roster in 2018-19 including 11 players who started at least one game, nine who played at least 10 or more minutes and 86 percent of its scoring, plus the return of Minlend.
 
2017-18 in Review
Record: 22-17 (9-9 WCC, t-4th)
Postseason:  College Basketball Invitational (Championship Round)
Best Wins: Nevada, No. 15 Saint Mary's, Colgate, Utah Valley, North Texas, UC Davis
Leading Scorer:  Frankie Ferrari (11.4)
Leading Rebounder: Matt McCarthy (5.8)
Field Goal Percentage (min. 100 attempts): Matt McCarthy (.525)
3-Point Field Goals Made: Jordan Ratinho (86 – single season record)
Assists: Frankie Ferrari (179 – fifth in a single season)
Blocks:  Nate Renfro (43)
School Records:  3-point field goals made (333)
All-WCC Players: Frankie Ferrari (1^st Team), Souley Boum (Freshmen)
Graduation Losses:  Chase Foster
Starters Returning/Lost: 4/1