The 2017–18 USC Upstate Spartans men's basketball team represented the University of South Carolina Upstate during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Spartans, led by first-year head coach Kyle Perry, played their home games at the G. B. Hodge Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference. Perry was initially named interim coach upon head coach Eddie Payne's retirement on October 3, 2017, due to health concerns, but had the interim tag removed on October 20 and was named full-time head coach. They finished the season 7–25, 2–12 in ASUN play to finish in last place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the ASUN tournament to Florida Gulf Coast.
After the season, USC Upstate fired Perry on March 1, less than five months after being named full time head coach of the Spartans. On March 30, the school hired former Tulane head coach Dave Dickerson for the job.
This season marked the final season for USC Upstate as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference, as the school announced on November 15, 2017, that they will be moving to the Big South Conference for the 2018–19 season.
Previous season The Spartans finished the 2016–17 season 17–16, 7–7 in ASUN play to finish in a tie for fourth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the ASUN tournament to Kennesaw State. They were invited to the CollegeInsider.com Tournament where they lost in the first round to Furman.
The season marked Eddie Payne's 15th and final season as head coach at USC Upstate as he announced his retirement on October 3, 2017.
Offseason Departures Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure Tim Hart 5 G 6'3" 175 Freshman Plano, TX Left the team for personal reasons Josh Cuthbertson 10 F 6'5" 185 Senior New Bern, NC Graduated Philip Whittington 15 F 6'9" 215 Sophomore Columbus, GA Transferred to Kent State Blake Edwards 21 G 6'0" 180 Sophomore Chapin, SC Walk-on; left the team for personal reasons Nick Kornieck 25 F 6'7" 205 Freshman Henderson, NV Transferred to Doane Michael Buchanan 44 C 7'0" 285 Senior Las Vegas, NV Graduated
Incoming transfers Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School Patrick Welch 15 G 6'1" 185 Junior Pembroke, NH Junior college transferred from South Georgia Technical College
2017 recruiting class
Roster
Schedule and results
!colspan=9 style=| Non-conference regular season
!colspan=9 style=| Atlantic Sun Conference regular season
!colspan=9 style=| Atlantic Sun tournament
References