Hope for USF Basketball Renewed?

At 11-8 (4-2), the USF basketball team has a winning record, more importantly, a winning record in league play. Since the Bulls joined the Big East in 2005, it has been a rough life in conference play for this team. Aside from the 2009-2010 season and the play of Dominique Jones (led the team to 20-wins), basketball has tended to be an after thought on campus. Basketball has been painful to watch for the fans and students, but now, it would seem that things are starting to turn around.

While I remain skeptical and am still holding my breath, the thought of hope is starting to creep into my mind and the minds of USF fans. Here are some of the reasons hope is starting to grow for the basketball program.

Talented team - the first and foremost reason for the recent success is the team itself and the job that Heath has done to build it. The team has senior leadership with Anderson, Gilchrist, and Robertson, adding leadership and skill to the team. The team also has young stars that are helping win games now and are setting the foundation for the bright future. Growing stars like Jawanza Poland and Anthony Collins are starting to gain fans and bring more people to the stands when they take the court. Mix in the other players Heath has brought into the mix, Brock and Omogbehin, the team is loaded and will have plenty of depth and skill for the years to come. But the key to continuing the success is recruiting, which brings me to my next point.

Recruiting - The key to any successful program is recruiting. Heath has put together arguably one of the best recruiting classes together for the class of 2012. With Austin, Abdul-Aleem, Holland, Hawkins, and LeDay, the Bulls recruiting class is loaded with explosive talent that will make an immediate impact once they step on campus. In the past, Heath struggled to put together a full class of players to make up his roster, but now he has more players than ever before. He even has two players committed to the 2013 class, something USF fans have not seen in a long time, early commits. Heath is doing a great job to finally attract talent to Tampa, but he has had some help along the way, new facilities.

New facilities - Just two years ago, the players would have to work out at the Rec center and use the bad looking Sun Dome to practice, but things have changed since then. The Bulls now have their own practice facility with the Muma Center. The Muma Center provides practice courts, lockerrooms, film rooms, and even more that helps prepare the players for the games and also serves as a recruiting tool to show the talented high school players that USF is a top place to play their college hoops.

Another facility that is still undergoing a huge facelift is the Sun Dome. Last season, the Bulls played their final home game at the Dome before it was gutted. The Sun Dome, a huge landmark on campus has been overdue for renovation and finally the state and university got the funding to make it happen. While it has displaced both basketball teams (and the volleyball team), the Sun Dome, once complete, will make it one of the best facilities in the country with the complete.

So while there is a lot of basketball left to play and the team has to take it one game at a time, there is hope. Hope that the team can become a consistent winner and bring back the passion for the game to the campus and get the fans energized once more. One step at a time.