By Aidan Joly
The 2024-25 season begins with a lot of talent in the American Athletic Conference, but it is fair to say that the league is top-heavy with the likes of Memphis, FAU, South Florida and UAB followed by a clear division with the rest.
However, that doesn’t mean a few more teams can’t make noise. Let’s take a look at each of the 13 that make up the league this season.
South Florida Bulls
2023-24: 25-8 (16-2 AAC), lost in NIT second round
It was a historically good season for the program in Amir Abdur-Rahim’s first season at the helm, winning 25 games for the first time in program history and its 16 conference wins also represented the most in program history. The Bulls reached the postseason for the first time since 2019 and the NCAA/NIT for the first time since 2012.
A solid plethora of talent returns. Kobe Knox (8.4 PPG), Jayden Reid (6.8 PPG) and Brandon Stroud (5.2 PPG) all return, as does Kasen Jennings, who averaged 6.2 PPG in 2022-23.
Kennesaw State transfer Quincy Ademokoya, who played for Abdur-Rahim with the Owls and averaged 10.2 PPG last season, joins the Bulls. Jamille Reynolds (Cincinnati) and De’Ante Green (Florida State) were both role players at their last stops. JUCO guard Jimmie Williams is a good talent.
Four-star prospect C.J. Brown and three-star Kameren Wright are the freshman adds here.
It’s fair to say that South Florida will be due for a step back, but rebuilds are something Abdur-Rahim has excelled at.
Florida Atlantic Owls
2023-24: 25-9 (14-4 AAC), lost in NCAA first round
It’s a new era in Boca Raton. After the back-to-back amazing seasons, former head coach Dusty May and the rest of the key pieces from the Final Four team in Johnell Davis and Vladislav Goldin are gone.
The replacement on the sidelines is former Baylor assistant John Jakus. Thankfully for Jakus, the program’s recent success has made FAU a transfer destination. He picked up KyKy Tandy, who averaged 17.8 PPG at Jacksonville State and formerly played at Xavier, Ken Evans Jr., who had 18.8 PPG at Jackson State, and Baba Miller, who had 7.6 PPG at Florida State. He also grabbed Leland Walker, who had 15.4 PPG at Eastern Kentucky.
That’ll be the core of the team. The only returner is Tre Carroll, who had 4.0 PPG last season. Six freshman come in, none of them truly heralded.
The depth may be a question here, but FAU still has the top-end talent to compete towards the top of the league.
Charlotte 49ers
2023-24: 19-12 (13-5 AAC), no postseason
Things went well in Aaron Fearne’s first season in Charlotte, but it did not make the postseason.
Nik Graves (10.3 PPG) and Robert Braswell IV (6.5 PPG) are the key returners and will be expected to take on a larger role. Jackson Threadgill (5.7 PPG) is also back after being solid depth piece last season.
As for the new guys, Nika Metskhvarishvili was the leading scorer at Louisiana Monroe with 12.3 PPG along with 5.8 RPG, Kylan Blackmon averaged 11.4 PPG at Coastal Carolina last season, Jeremiah Oden had 7.6 PPG at DePaul, and Giancarlo Rosado had 5.0 PPG at Florida Atlantic.
Unranked guard Ben Bradford is the only freshman.
There is a decent roster in Charlotte, but probably not enough to compete towards the top of the league.
UAB Blazers
2023-24: 23-12 (12-6 AAC), lost in NCAA first round
The defending league champions who gave San Diego State a scare in the first round of the tournament, the Blazers will again compete for a league title under coach Andy Kennedy.
UAB will return much of its talent. That all revolves around Yaxel Lendeborg, the team’s leading scorer, who had 13.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game last season. Efrem Johnson also returns after he had 10.7 PPG, Alejandro Vasquez is back after having 10.9 PPG, as is Christian Coleman, who had 7.2 PPG at 4.6 RPG.
As for transfer adds, it beings on Tyren Moore, who had 17.0 PPG at Georgia Southern, Greg Gordon, who had 16.0 PPG at Iona, and Bradley Ezewiro, who had 12.4 PPG at Saint Louis. Jaborri McGhee, a JUCO add, also seems like a great fit.
Three-star forward Makhi Miles headlines the freshmen on the roster.
This is a very good roster. UAB will once again be towards the top of the league in 2024-25.
Memphis Tigers
2023-24: 22-10 (11-7 AAC), no postseason
It’s never an off-season without some kind of Memphis discourse. There’s been plenty of that this summer and fall. It came after a season where Memphis was at one point 15-2 and 4-0 in the AAC, before it went 7-8 the rest of the way and failed to win an AAC tournament game.
However, if Memphis and Penny Hardaway can find a way to put it together, the Tigers have some talent, nearly all new adds.
PJ Haggerty leads the way of that group after he averaged 21.2 PPG at Tulsa last season. Colby Rogers had 15.5 PPG at Wichita State, and Tyrese Hunter had 11.1 PPG at Texas. PJ Carter (UTSA), Tyreek Smith (SMU) and Baraka Okojie (George Mason) were all solid at their last stops. Dain Dainja (Illinois) and Moussa Cisse (Ole Miss) were role guys for power conference teams.
The only returner is Nick Jourdain, who had 6.5 PPG.
The lone freshman is top-100 prospect Jaden Harris, a far cry from the high-level recruits Hardaway is used to pulling in.
Maybe Hardaway and Memphis can stay away from off-the-court drama this season. If it can, it has a real chance to make noise and maybe be the best team in the league.
North Texas Mean Green
2023-24: 19-15 (10-8 AAC), lost in NIT second round
It was a solid season for North Texas in Ross Hodge’s first season at the helm that ended in the postseason, but the Mean Green are in store for a rebuild.
No player who averaged more than 4.1 PPG, that being Rondel Walker, is back. Moulaye Sissoko is a solid rebounder, who had 4.7 RPG in 16.5 minutes per contest.
So, Hodge had to go to the portal. He got a solid group led by Atin Wright, who had 14.1 PPG from Drake and shot over 40% from three, Latrell Jossell had 12.9 PPG at Stephen F. Austin, and Jonathan Massie had 11.3 points and 5.2 rebounds per game at Longwood. Jasper Floyd had a productive 9.9 PPG at Fairfield, and Grant Newell was a solid role guy at California.
North Texas brings in a pair of three-stars, guard Tyran Mason and center Baron Smith.
East Carolina Pirates
2023-24: 15-18 (7-11 AAC), no postseason
It was a tough season for the Pirates in Michael Schwartz’s third season in Greenville, but seven wins represented the most since it joined the league in 2014.
The Pirates do return leading scorer RJ Felton, who had 17.3 PPG, so that is something positive. He’s the only returner who averaged in double digits, though. Cam Hayes had 7.6 PPG.
There were some decent portal adds. Jayshayne Soumaoro averaged 12.7 PPG at Gardner-Webb and Jordan Riley had 12.4 PPG at Temple. Riley has potential for an even larger role at ECU. CJ Walker had 7.5 PPG at UCF and Yann Farell had 7.4 points and 5.2 rebounds per game at St. Bonaventure.
One player to watch is center Cyr Malonga, who only had 2.1 PPG and 2.0 RPG, but started to come into his own in more consistent minutes towards the end of the year. He had 10 and 9 in a game against SMU at the end of the year.
There are good young pieces here, but there will surely be some growing pains.
Tulsa Golden Hurricane
2023-24: 16-15 (7-11 AAC), no postseason
The Golden Hurricane had an 11-win improvement in year two of the Eric Konkol era after a dreadful 5-25 campaign in 2022-23. It also won six more league games after going 1-17 two seasons ago.
Tulsa will bring back a number of key pieces. That group of returners is headlined by Jared Garcia, who averaged 9.3 points and 6.0 rebounds per game last season, as well as Isaiah Barnes, who had 8.2 PPG. Tyshawn Archie had 7.4 PPG as well. Finally, Keaston Willis only played two games before a season-ending injury. In those two games though, he had 12.5 PPG.
As for new players, they bring on Dwon Odom, who had 11.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game at Georgia State. He is the headliner. Braeden Carrington was a solid role guy at Minnesota. Justin Amadi had 4.9 PPG at James Madison in 2022-23.
Konkol brings in two very good prospects. Guard Jaye Nash is a four-star hailing from outside Atlanta, as well as three-star center Ian Smikle. Both are top-70 prospects.
Tulsa does lose a lot, but brings back good talent. We will see how they can compete in the AAC.
Tulane Green Wave
2023-24: 14-17 (5-13 AAC), no postseason
Tulane took a dip after a 20-win 2022-23 season, winning just five conference games after going 12-6 in the league a year before.
No player with more than 3.6 PPG last season returns. So, coach Ron Hunter had to rebuild the roster.
Four of his five transfers in Tyler Ringgold (Texas A&M), Kaleb Banks (Indiana), Mari Jordan (Georgia) and Rowan Brumbaugh (Georgetown) were all on high-major rosters last season, but only one – Brumbaugh – played consistently, where he averaged 8.6 PPG. Ringgold and Jordan did not play at all. To supplement some experience, Hunter brought in Michael Eley, who had 13.2 PPG at Siena.
Three great freshmen come in: guard Kyle Greene and forward Kameron Williams are both four-star prospects, while Stefan Cicic is a three-star. All should have roles.
It’s worth noting that there are no seniors on this team. That bodes well for the future. But for now, it might be another tough year for Tulane.
Temple Owls
2023-24: 16-20 (5-13 AAC), no postseason
It was a difficult first season in Adam Fisher’s first season at the helm at Temple, but he showed off his recruiting prowess in this cycle.
Temple had three huge pickups that should send it towards the top of the American. The biggest is perhaps Jamal Mashburn Jr., a guy who averaged 14.8 PPG on a New Mexico team that won the Mountain West. Lynn Greer III is another big pickup after he averaged 11.2 PPG at crosstown rival St. Joseph’s last season. Elijah Gray had 8.7 PPG in limited minutes at Fordham, while Jameel Brown was a depth piece at Penn State.
The new big transfers will be supported by a nice cast of returners that includes Steve Settle III (8.7 PPG, 5.3 RPG), Shane Dezonie (7.7 PPG), Matteo Picarelli (7.6 PPG) and Zion Stanford (6.6 PPG).
Top-40 prospect Dillon Battie will have a role from the jump, while the Owls also bring in three-star prospects Aiden Tobiasen and Babatunde Durodola.
This is a Temple team that will take a big jump up. Double digit conference wins should be expected.
Wichita State Shockers
2023-24: 15-19 (5-13 AAC), no postseason
The Shockers struggled in Paul Mills’ first season with the program, but a good off-season has Wichita State in a good place heading into the season.
Mills was able to retain two double digit scorers in Xavier Bell (11.6 PPG) and Harlond Beverly (10.9 PPG, 5.1 RPG), as well as Quincy Ballard, who had 7.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game last season. Ronnie DeGray III is also back and should take a step up this season.
A solid transfer class comes to Wichita. The group is led by AJ McGinnis, who had 13.2 PPG at Lipscomb, as well as Corey Washington, who had 16.1 PPG on a Saint Peter’s team that went to the NCAA tournament. Justin Hill was a role player at Georgia. Jalen Meeks played in five games at Arizona State. Finally, they bring in Matej Bosnjak, who played professionally in Croatia last season.
A pair of three-star prospects, Zion Pimpkin and TJ Williams, join the program.
There’s a lot to like about this Wichita State team. Expect it to make some noise and have a chance at making a run to the NCAA tournament.
Rice Owls
2023-24: 11-21 (5-13 AAC), no postseason
Rice really struggled in 2023-24, resulting in the firing of coach Scott Pera after seven years at the helm.
Replacing him is Rob Lanier, who spent the past two seasons at SMU and was at Georgia State before that.
Simply put, there is not much to like about this roster. Trae Broadnax (USC Upstate) and Kellen Amos (Central Connecticut) both averaged double figures at their previous stops, but it was at the low-major level. Three players followed Lanier to Rice, the most productive of whom was Jalen Smith, who had 6.0 PPG. As for other guys, Caden Powell had 5.5 PPG at Wyoming and Jimmy Oladokun Jr. had 5.7 PPG at San Diego.
The only notable returner is Alem Huseinovic, who had 7.5 PPG last season. The only freshman recruit is top-40 guard Aaron Powell, a good one, but a freshman can only do so much here.
It’s going to be really tough sledding for Lanier in year one. It will just be about making games competitive.
UTSA Roadrunners
2023-24: 11-21 (5-13 AAC), no postseason
A third straight season with five or less league wins resulted in the firing of Steve Henson after eight seasons with UTSA.
In his place is Austin Claunch, a 34-year-old already on his second head coaching job after serving as the head coach of Nicholls from 2018-2023 before he left to be an assistant coach at Alabama last season.
A few players with high-major experience come in. Primo Spears, who has become something of a college basketball nomad, is the leader of that sect after he averaged 10.3 PPG at Florida State. He will be on his fourth school in four years. Damari Monsanto averaged 5.1 PPG across 11 games for Wake Forest last season.
From there, it is mid-major guys with varying levels of success. Tai’Reon Joseph averaged 20.5 PPG at Southern last season and Skylar Wicks, who had 13.7 PPG at Incarnate Word, are the only double digit scorers at their previous stops. South Alabama transfer Marcus Millender (9.7 PPG) and Buffalo transfer Jonnivius Smith (8.0 PPG) came the closest. Finally, Raekwon Horton had 6.9 PPG at James Madison.
David Hermes comes in from JUCO school Indian Hills.
Claunch is one of the better young minds in coaching, but it will be a tough season for him in year one. UTSA doesn’t have a ton of basketball resources, making it a challenge for them to compete on a nightly basis.
AJ Hoops 