The 2017-18 University of South Alabama men's basketball season is officially underway, and Matthew Graves sat down with USAJaguars.com to talk about having a young team and what he likes about the roster, plus a position-by-position breakdown.

What stands out from last season?
Well certainly I was really excited about how we started the season, the road victory at UNLV and tying for the best start in school history at 5-0, but throughout the course of the season, you're certainly disappointed by losing some close games and then we really struggled to finish the season. Ultimately, we underachieved last year and that's really disappointing.

How will you approach this season differently than last?
We've changed some things, both offensively and defensively, that I think will enable us to really soar with our strengths that we have on our team. We've simplified some things defensively and we're working on making some adjustments offensively that I think will help enhance our ability to score the basketball.

How do you go about replacing so much of your production from last year?
I think it starts with defining and developing roles within our team. I'm very encouraged right now with the willingness of our guys to buy into roles. That's where we struggled in the past – guys accepting what they can and can't do and really thriving in their roles that they've been given. I'm very encouraged so far that, as we talk about the upcoming season and what guys' roles are going to be, this group is responding much better than in years past.

Your core group will be sophomores – what are the positives and negatives of that?
The main negative is game experience – stepping up in the moment and making that big play or that big decision. Just having minutes in game situations and how to respond and react. Instead of being a guy that played limited minutes, you've got a guy that was playing 20-plus minutes a night to see how consistent they can be in that role, game in and game out. The positive for me, is the future of South Alabama basketball is extremely bright. We've got a lot of young, talented players in our freshman and sophomore class. I think as those guys gain experience, they gain the knowledge of the repetitions, day in and day out. There are going to be more consistent, they're going to be more willing and able to buy into their roles and really thrive in those roles.

What are your expectations of Josh Ajayi?
My expectation of Josh is to be the best player he can be. I think he showed glimpses last year of being a really good basketball player and it goes back to having the understanding that we need you to do that on a consistent basis. I feel like Josh is capable of averaging a double-double this year and he's got to really take that killer instinct, not only from practice to the game, but from game to game to game, and practice to practice to practice.

We were one of the top turnover teams in nation last year – do you expect to improve and make that a key component of how we play?
I don't think it will necessarily be a key component, but I think we're going to need to be a team that is able to score from our defense. I think we made strides in that area because we've got a lot of guys that really excel getting out in transition. That needs to be one of our areas that we've got to be really good at, but I think as an overall defense, we've got to do a much better job in defending in transition, and then also being able to complete the play rebounding the basketball.

How do you feel about your roster?
I'm excited to coach these guys. I'm excited that everybody's been together all summer, with the exception of Rozelle Nix, so we've had a chance to really bond and become a lot closer. Our team chemistry is the best it's been in my time here, and we've got guys that are wanting to be coached and willing to be coached. If you combine that with the talent that we have, great things are certainly capable of happening.

What does Rozelle bring to the team?
First and foremost, he is a great teammate. He seen a lot of basketball being in his fifth year of college. He understands the rigors of a season. He's seen it in junior college, when he was playing a lot of minutes, to when he didn't play as much at Pitt. The experience that he has is going to be very valuable for our team. On the basketball court, he just brings a size and presence that you just can't equate until you're standing next to him. I look for him to provide a little bit of inside scoring and be able to help us in one of our biggest areas of need, which is rebounding.

What are your goals for this season?
We want to put ourselves in a position where we're able to compete for the conference tournament championship in New Orleans. I think we're going to be a team that continues to get better and better as the season goes on and we need to position ourselves where we feel like we have an opportunity to make a run in the conference tournament.

What do you like about the team?
Their versatility – we've got a lot of interchangeable parts. We've got a lot of guys that are willing to work and put in the time to be good. They're very curious learners and ask a lot of good questions. They go out each and every workout that we've had so far and they're trying to do what we ask them to do. It makes our job much better when you've got a group of guys that have bought in to the big picture and I think that's what's exciting about this group.

What are some of your concerns going into the season?
I think overall experience. We've got a lot of guys that haven't played heavy minutes at the college level. We've got a lot of guys that haven't played together. So figuring out the best matchups for different guys, and rotations and different things like that – it's the unknown right now.

Where do you want to see the most improvement from the team?
We really need to improve on both sides of the basketball. Defensively, we've got to be a better rebounding team and we've got to do a better job of defending in transition, especially giving up transition 3-point shots. We've got to take that away. Offensively, we've got to be more efficient at scoring the basketball. We've got to shoot a better percentage and that goes into executing our plays better and the right guys taking the right shot at the right time.

What were the most important items on your agenda during the offseason?
Overall, our team conditioning. I felt like we wanted to really put an emphasis on that. I think as last year wore on, we let that slip a little bit, so we wanted to really recommit to getting guys in better condition. I think we've accomplished that throughout the summer and in the fall. Also, the overall leadership on our team and the consistency in our daily effort. One of the things that we did this summer as a team, was we read "The Energy Bus" together and talked a lot about that book. I think it's one thing that we can fall back on and use throughout the season.

What was the focus of your workouts in the offseason?
This summer we spent a lot of time working just on our overall skills. It might sound very elementary, but we went back to the basics of passing and catching, dribbling, pivoting, and just breaking down the fundamentals of basketball because we need to be a better offensive team. Going back and looking at some of the stats and where we fell short, I think it came down to just being able to fundamentally execute the basics of basketball.

Which of the newcomers do you expect to contribute right away?
Obviously we hope Rozelle has a big impact for us this year. Jordan Andrews did a great job in his redshirt year. He's really had tremendous workouts this summer and fall. Being 6-5 combined with his ability to shoot the basketball, I think he will really help our whole offense. John Pettway also had a very good redshirt year and has developed, and defensively on the perimeter, he adds another element to our game.

How do you feel recruiting went past offseason and what are your plans going forward?
I'm really excited about the newcomers that we brought into our program. Each and every year, I think we've enhanced the overall talent of our program and our depth. We've added guys that are team-first oriented guys that understand the value of winning as a team. I think they will develop at different rates, but they've certainly added value to our team. The nice thing about where we are from a recruiting standpoint, having so many freshmen and sophomores, we're able to evaluate and really focus in on a select group of kids, which we've been able to do throughout the spring and summer. As we move forward, our recruiting targets are a lot more focused.

What are your thoughts on the schedule?
I think we put together a schedule that can be very challenging for a team with a lack of experience. Early on, traveling to Texas Tech and then going out to play at La Salle, those two road games right out of the gate will be extremely difficult for a young team. Four out of our first five games are on the road, so we're really going to test ourselves early. But as we get into the season, I think we've got some games that we need to really focus on and protect our home court. The teams that beat us last year on the road that are returning, I think they will certainly catch our eye.

How do you see the race for the Sun Belt Conference title?
I think the Sun Belt Conference race is extremely tough. I think it's a wide open race much like last year. I think between first place and all the way to eighth or ninth place, might be separated by two or three games. It wouldn't surprise me that the team that ultimately wins the regular season, doesn't have three, four or five losses, because of the balance this year. Last year the Sun Belt was as good as it's ever been, and I think this year it's actually going to be a little bit better.

Graves' position thoughts:
Point guard
At point guard we've got three guys that are in the mix for playing time. Obviously you've got Dederick Lee who was with us last year, did a great job with his assist-to-turnover ratio and really becoming comfortable with what we're doing. Herb McGee played a lot of minutes as a freshman and did some really nice things for us, especially not turning the basketball over. The third candidate, John Pettway, has yet to see any game time, but has really positioned himself well in the offseason with his ability to really guard on the perimeter. I'm excited to watch those three guys compete in practice.

Shooting guard
Jordan Andrews has really come in and had a great offseason. He's shooting the ball with the highest percentage in our workouts currently, but Rodrick Sykes and A.J. Caldwell are doing a nice job getting comfortable adjusting to what we're asking them to do. Those guys are going to factor in for potential minutes this year.

Small forward
Trhae Mitchell has really separated himself at the '3' with his ability to defend multiple positions. I think Trhae has the chance to be an all-league level defensive player in the Sun Belt. With our versatility, you can see a Jordan Andrews or an A.J. Caldwell slide over and play minutes at the '3' because the '2s' and '3s' are quite interchangeable this year.

Posts
Rozelle Nix and Kevin Morris are true, traditional, back-to-the-basket post players that can clog up the lane and be big space eaters. Those two guys are doing a great job with their conditioning in the fall. But then you've got Josh who's really solidified himself at one of the forwards spots with his ability to not only score from the post but he can also stretch the defense and play out on the perimeter. Nick Davis is a fifth-year senior that is recovering from shoulder surgery and he's doing really well for us. You've also got Joe Thompson, who as a freshman continues to get better and better every day and the future is really bright for him.

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