GETTING INSIDE

Whatever happens with San Francisco is now is the responsibility of second-year coach Rex Walters, not his predecessors.

He began to assume ownership of the program late last season when he jettisoned four players, including one of his top scorers, for failing to follow instructions during a practice. That established that Walters was the man in charge, and that things would be done his way.

Walters completed the takeover of the program this season, because every player on the roster except for standout senior forward Dior Lowhorn was brought into the program by Walters.

Lowhorn is a vital piece, of course, and could be the best player in the conference this season. Whatever success USF has this season will be the result of Lowhorn’s high-level all-around play.

But the Dons are not expected to challenge for the conference title this year, and Walters’ chore is to groom the many young players on the team into a squad that can compete for the title in a year or two.

None of the four suspended players is back, and that includes Manny Quezada, a high-scoring guard who was a senior anyhow, and center Hyman Taylor, a frontcourt player who had another year of eligibility.

A more significant loss is the departure of guard Chris O’Brien, who started 20 games last season as a freshman but has transferred to Cal Poly.

Still, five players who started at least 12 games are back. Plus, the six newcomers will get a lot of playing time right away, and at least one could be in the starting lineup.

Guard Rashad Green, a transfer from Manhattan College, is eligible to play this season and will be counted on to help immediately in the backcourt. Dominique O’Connor is probably the best of the freshmen, and he may end up starting at point guard, a critical position for the Dons this season.

The centerpiece remains Lowhorn, who continues to expand his game by improving his perimeter skills.

Blake Wallace will probably join him in the frontcourt, with sophomore guard Kwame Vaughn expected to do big things this year after showing flashes of brilliance last season.

Without significant offensive help from Vaughn and sophomore swingman Angelo Caloiaro and improved outside shooting, defenses will continue to focus on Lowhorn, who was the Dons’ only reliable scoring threat last season and was often smothered by opponents’ defenses.

Three freshmen and a junior college transfer are expected to supply the size inside, because Lowhorn and Wallace are both about 6-7. None of the four new big men is likely to score a lot of points, though.

The Dons played better toward the end of last season, after Walters’ suspension seemed to set the tone, and they should get better as this season goes along. The Dons want to run more this season, but that will require an improvement in their defense and rebounding, areas in which USF was lacking last season.

NOTES, QUOTES

• Rex Walters brought in three foreign players this season, and all three are big men—Tomas Bruha, a 7-foot freshman from the Czech Republic; Nicola Stojiljkovic, a 6-8 perimeter player from France; and Moustapha Diarra, a 6-10 junior college transfer who is originally from France.

• Sophomore G Peter Smith will wear No. 20 this season in honor of his late father, Phil Smith, whose No. 20 was retired after his standout career at USF.

• USF’s Memorial Gym will have a new look. A new floor was installed, replacing the one installed in 1959, and the antiquated baskets that were stabilized with wires to the stands have been replaced by stand-alone basket standards.

Last Year:   11-19, 3-11 in WCC, seventh place.

Head Coach:   Rex Walters (42-52 career), second year at San Francisco (11-19)

Quote To Note:   “He plays at a gear we haven’t seen around here in a while.”—USF head coach Rex Walters, on the speed of freshman guard Dominique O’Connor.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

Scouting The Newcomers:   Freshman PG Dominique O’Connor played for one of the best high school teams in the country (Westchester High School in Los Angeles) and will give the Dons the kind of quickness they have been lacking in the backcourt.

Freshman Perris Blackwell is a bulky 6-8 player who can give the Dons some inside muscle, and 6-10 junior college transfer Moustapha Diarra is a pretty good shot-blocker who has the potential to improve offensively. Rashad Green, who started 27 games as a freshman at Manhattan, may not help much in scoring, but he’s a good rebounder for a guard and can do a variety of things.

Key Early-season Games:   The two-game road trip against Arizona State on Nov. 20 and UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 23 will tell a lot about where the Dons stand early on. Arizona State is not nearly as strong as it was last season, and may finish toward the bottom of the Pac-10, while Santa Barbara is expected to challenge for the Big West title. If the Dons can stay competitive in those games and develop some team chemistry, it may bode well for the season.

Program Direction:   Rex Walters has not yet proven he can make at winner out of USF, but he seems capable of restoring some order, which had been lacking in the previous regime. USF is about as low as it can go at the moment, so upward movement would not be too difficult. Walters still has not completely stabilized the program, as young players are still finding their niche, and that may prevent consistent success this season. However, it should become clear during the season whether the Dons have things going in the right direction.

Probable Starting Lineup:   PG Dominique O’Connor, SG Dontae Bryant, SG Kwame Vaughn, SF Blake Wallace, PF Dior Lowhord.

Roster Report:  

• F Dior Lowhorn was the team’s top 3-point shooter last season at 43.2 percent. He is also the team’s best low-post player so it’s hard to know where to play him. Lowhorn led the team in rebounding while averaging 20.1 points last season. No other USF player averaged more than 10.8.

• Senior G Dontae Bryant started 24 games last season, and only Dior Lowhorn started more. He averaged just 4.1 points, but led the team in assists with 91.

• Sophomore G Peter Smith, who came to USF as a walk-on, earned a scholarship last season with some unexpected production. He did not play at all in nine of the first 16 games, and played only garbage-time minutes in the other seven. But he started to receive playing time late in the season—mainly as an example of the kind of player Rex Walters wanted to have in his program—and he also started to produce. He ended up starting three games and figures to get significant playing time this season.