2016–17 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team

The 2016–17 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team represented DePaul University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played almost all of their home games at Allstate Arena in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois, though they scheduled two regular-season games at the considerably smaller McGrath–Phillips Arena, the regular home of the DePaul women's team, on the school's Chicago campus. The Blue Demons, members of the Big East Conference, were led by head coach Dave Leitao, in the second year of his current tenure and fifth overall at DePaul. They finished the season 9–23, 2–16 in Big East play to finish in last place. They lost in the first round of the Big East tournament to Xavier.

2016–17 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball
A blue block M with maize-colored borders and the word Michigan across the middle.
ConferenceBig East Conference
Record9–23 (2–16 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Rick Carter
  • Billy Garrett
  • Patrick Sellers
Home arenaAllstate Arena
McGrath–Phillips Arena
Seasons
2016–17 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 Villanova 15 3   .833 32 4   .889
No. 21 Butler 12 6   .667 25 9   .735
Creighton 10 8   .556 25 10   .714
Seton Hall 10 8   .556 21 12   .636
Providence 10 8   .556 20 13   .606
Marquette 10 8   .556 19 13   .594
Xavier 9 9   .500 24 14   .632
Saint John's 7 11   .389 14 19   .424
Georgetown 5 13   .278 14 18   .438
DePaul 2 16   .111 9 23   .281
2017 Big East tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The season marked the Blue Demons' final season at Allstate Arena. DePaul moved both its men's and women's teams into the new Wintrust Arena on Chicago's Near South Side.[1] The Blue Demons opened the arena with a game against Notre Dame on November 11, 2017.[2]

Previous season

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The Blue Demons finished the 2015–16 season 9–22, 3–15 in Big East play to finish in ninth place. They lost to Georgetown in the first round of the Big East tournament.

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Notes
Tommy Hamilton IV 2 C 6'11" 255 Junior Chicago, IL Left the team for personal reasons
Rashaun Stimage 3 F 6'8" 217 Senior Chicago, IL Graduated
Myke Henry 4 F 6'6" 228 RS Senior Chicago, IL Graduated
David Molinari 10 G 6'0" 185 Senior Peoria, IL Graduated
Develle Phillips 12 F 6'9" 210 Senior Bowie, MD Transferred to Odessa College
Cory Dolins 13 G 6'0" 182 Senior Northbrook, IL Graduated
Frederick Scott 14 F 6'7" 235 Freshman Munster, IN Transferred to Rider
Aaron Simpson 15 G 5'11" 152 Senior North Chicago, IL Graduated
Oumar Barry 25 F 6'10" 226 Freshman Camp Springs, MD Transferred to Iowa Western CC

Incoming transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Austin Grandstaff 2 G 6'4" 188 Sophomore Rockwall, TX Transferred from Ohio State. Under NCAA transfer rules, Grandstaff will have to sit out the 2016–17 season. Will have three years of remaining eligibility.
Tre'Darius McCallum 10 F 6'7" 215 Junior Myrtle Beach, SC Junior college transferred from Indian Hills Community College.
Max Strus 31 G 6'6" 215 Junior Hickory Hills, IL Transferred from Lewis. Under NCAA transfer rules, Strus will have to sit out the 2016–17 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Chris Harrison-Docks 51 G 6'0" 175 RS Senior Okemos, MI Transferred from Western Kentucky. Harrison-Docks will be eligible to play immediately since Harrison-Docks graduated from Western Kentucky.

2016 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Al Eichelberger
#52 PF
Saginaw, MI Saginaw High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Nov 9, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Brandon Cyrus
#51 SG
La Porte, IN La Lumiere School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Nov 10, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Devin Gage
PG
Chicago, IL Curie High School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jun 19, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPNN/A
Levi Cook
C
Arnett, WV Elev8 Basketball Academy 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 260 lb (120 kg) Apr 5, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPNN/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2016 DePaul Signees". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  • "2016 DePaul Signees". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  • "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 1, 2016.

2017 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for 2017 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Justin Roberts
#31 PG
Indianapolis, IN Pike High School 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jun 13, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN: 
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

2018 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
John Diener
SG
Cedarburg, WI Cedarburg High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 170 lb (77 kg) May 4, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPNN/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Preseason

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Prior to the season, DePaul was picked to finish last in a poll of Big East coaches.[3]

Roster

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2016–17 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 R. J. Curington 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 199 lb (90 kg) Sr Oak Hill Academy Dyer, IN
G 1 Darrick Wood 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 178 lb (81 kg) Sr Bridgton Academy
Hutchinson CC
Alexandria, VA
G 2 Austin Grandstaff (I)   6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Rockwall
Ohio State
Rockwall, TX
G 3 Brandon Cyrus 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 187 lb (85 kg) Fr La Lumiere School Toronto, ON
G 4 Devin Gage 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 177 lb (80 kg) Fr Curie Chicago, IL
G 5 Billy Garrett Jr. 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sr Morgan Park Chicago, IL
F 10 Tre'Darius McCallum 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 207 lb (94 kg) Jr St. James
Indian Hills CC
Myrtle Beach, SC
G 11 Eli Cain 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So St. Benedict's Prep Willingboro, NJ
G 12 Erten Gazi 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 212 lb (96 kg) So Istanbul Bostanci Doga College Northern Cyprus
F 23 Al Eichelberger 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 251 lb (114 kg) Fr Saginaw Saginaw, MI
F 30 Peter Ryckbosch 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 234 lb (106 kg) RS Sr St. Ignatius Chicago, IL
G 31 Max Strus (I)   6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Amos Alonzo Stagg
Lewis University
Hickory Hills, IL
F 32 David Leitao III (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 221 lb (100 kg) Sr Rock Bridge
Peru State College
Virginia Beach, VA
F 33 Joe Hanel (W) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 218 lb (99 kg) Jr Holy Family Catholic Savage, MN
C 44 Levi Cook 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 300 lb (136 kg) Fr 8 Sports Institute Clarksburg, WV
G 51 Chris Harrison-Docks 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 189 lb (86 kg) RS Sr Okemos
Western Kentucky
Okemos, MI
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Nov 4, 2016*
8:00 pm
Rockhurst W 79–53 
 26  Garrett Jr.   11  Cook   4  Garrett Jr.  McGrath–Phillips Arena (1,615)
Chicago, IL
Non-conference regular season
Nov 13, 2016*
6:00 pm, FS1
Robert Morris W 78–72  1–0
 21  Cain   8  McCallum   6  McCallum  McGrath–Phillips Arena (2,330)
Chicago, IL
Nov 17, 2016*
7:30 pm, FS1
Rutgers
Gavitt Tipoff Games
L 59–66  1–1
 24  Cain   9  McCallum   4  McCallum  Allstate Arena (4,057)
Rosemont, IL
Nov 20, 2016*
12:30 pm, FS1
Milwaukee W 77–59  2–1
 20  Garrett Jr.   6  Garrett Jr.   6  Garrett Jr.  Allstate Arena (4,518)
Rosemont, IL
Nov 23, 2016*
7:00 pm, FSN/WCIU
Missouri State W 68–66  3–1
 23  Garrett Jr.   12  McCallum   3  Garrett Jr.  Allstate Arena (4,387)
Rosemont, IL
Nov 30, 2016*
7:30 pm, FSN/WCIU
Drake W 77–75  4–1
 19  Cain   8  Cyrus   4  Tied  Allstate Arena (2,091)
Rosemont, IL
Dec 3, 2016*
6:00 pm, BTN
at Northwestern L 64–80  4–2
 15  Wood   8  Wood   3  Garrett Jr.  Welsh-Ryan Arena (6,751)
Evanston, IL
Dec 6, 2016*
8:00 pm, FSN/WCIU
Lamar W 80–61  5–2
 21  Cain   10  McCallum   2  Tied  Allstate Arena (4,516)
Rosemont, IL
Dec 10, 2016*
11:00 am, ESPNU
vs. Temple
Hoophall Miami Invitational
L 65–74  5–3
 17  Cain   7  Cain   2  Cain  American Airlines Arena (2,152)
Miami, FL
Dec 14, 2016*
7:00 pm, FS1
UIC L 75–80  5–4
 27  Cain   12  Hanel   3  Garrett Jr.  McGrath–Phillips Arena (2,099)
Chicago, IL
Dec 17, 2016*
1:00 pm, FS1
Chicago State
Las Vegas Classic
W 109–61  6–4
 31  Cain   12  McCallum   5  Garrett Jr.  Allstate Arena (4,592)
Rosemont, IL
Dec 19, 2016*
8:00 pm, FS1
Southeast Missouri State
Las Vegas Classic
W 81–78  7–4
 19  Garrett Jr.   8  Hanel   8  Garrett Jr.  Allstate Arena (4,377)
Rosemont, IL
Dec 22, 2016*
7:00 pm, FS1
vs. Wyoming
Las Vegas Classic semifinals
L 58–72  7–5
 18  McCallum   6  McCallum   1  4 tied  Orleans Arena 
Paradise, NV
Dec 23, 2016*
7:30 pm, FS1
vs. Missouri State
Las Vegas Classic 3rd place game
L 58–69  7–6
 16  Garrett Jr.   7  McCallum   3  Cain  Orleans Arena 
Paradise, NV
Big East Conference regular season
Dec 28, 2016
5:30 pm, FS1
at No. 1 Villanova L 65–68  7–7
(0–1)
 19  McCallum   7  McCallum   4  Tied  The Pavilion (6,500)
Villanova, PA
Jan 1, 2017
1:00 pm, FS1
St. John's L 73–79  7–8
(0–2)
 18  Cain   9  McCallum   3  Tied  Allstate Arena (5,152)
Rosemont, IL
Jan 7, 2017
11:00 am, CBSSN
at Seton Hall L 56–87  7–9
(0–3)
 22  Garrett Jr.   9  Cyrus   1  4 tied  Prudential Center (7,797)
Newark, NJ
Jan 10, 2017
8:00 pm, FS1
Providence W 64–63  8–9
(1–3)
 14  Garrett Jr.   8  McCallum   5  Garrett Jr.  Allstate Arena (4,641)
Rosemont, IL
Jan 14, 2017
1:00 pm, FSN/WCIU
at Marquette L 58–83  8–10
(1–4)
 12  Garrett Jr.   6  Hanel   3  Cain  BMO Harris Bradley Center (13,832)
Milwaukee, WI
Jan 16, 2017
3:30 pm, FS1
at St. John's
MLK Day Marathon
L 68–78  8–11
(1–5)
 16  Garrett Jr.   10  McCallum   5  Tied  Carnesecca Arena (5,602)
Queens, NY
Jan 21, 2017
1:00 pm, FS1
No. 13 Butler L 69–70 OT 8–12
(1–6)
 32  Cain   11  McCallum   4  Cain  Allstate Arena (6,713)
Rosemont, IL
Jan 28, 2017
1:30 pm, FS1
at No. 16 Creighton L 66–83  8–13
(1–7)
 18  Garrett Jr.   9  Hanel   5  Cain  CenturyLink Center (17,611)
Omaha, NE
Jan 31, 2017
8:15 pm, FS1
Georgetown L 73–76  8–14
(1–8)
 25  Garrett Jr.   6  Tied   3  Tied  Allstate Arena (5,455)
Rosemont, IL
Feb 4, 2017
1:00 pm, FS1
Marquette L 79–92  8–15
(1–9)
 21  McCallum   7  McCallum   7  Cain  Allstate Arena (8,392)
Rosemont, IL
Feb 8, 2017
5:30 pm, FS1
at No. 24 Xavier L 61–72  8–16
(1–10)
 18  Cyrus   6  Cyrus   4  Cain  Cintas Center (10,250)
Cincinnati, OH
Feb 11, 2017
1:00 pm, FS1
No. 23 Creighton L 58–93  8–17
(1–1)
 15  Harrison-Docks   7  Hanel   3  Cain  Allstate Arena (6,409)
Rosemont, IL
Feb 13, 2017
8:00 pm, CBSSN
No. 2 Villanova L 62–75  8–18
(1–12)
 18  Harrison-Docks   8  Tied   3  Tied  Allstate Arena (6,963)
Rosemont, IL
Feb 19, 2017
12:30 pm, FS1
at No. 24 Butler L 66–82  8–19
(1–13)
 24  Cain   6  Tied   3  Cain  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,100)
Indianapolis, IN
Feb 22, 2017
6:05 pm, CBSSN
at Georgetown W 67–65  9–19
(2–13)
 15  Garrett Jr.   7  McCallum   4  Garrett Jr.  Verizon Center (7,896)
Washington, D.C.
Feb 25, 2017
1:00 pm, FSN/WCIU
Seton Hall L 79–82  9–20
(2–14)
 26  Garrett Jr.   6  Cain   6  Garrett Jr.  Allstate Arena (5,144)
Rosemont, IL
Feb 28, 2017
7:30 pm, FS1
at Providence L 64–73  9–21
(2–15)
 12  Tied   7  McCallum   4  Tied  Dunkin' Donuts Center (10,101)
Providence, RI
Mar 4, 2017
1:00 pm, FSN/WCIU
Xavier L 65–79  9–22
(2–16)
 17  Garrett Jr.   7  Tied   3  Cain  Allstate Arena (6,774)
Rosemont, IL
Big East tournament
Mar 8, 2017
8:30 pm, FS1
(10) vs. (7) Xavier
First round
L 64–75  9–23
 16  Garrett Jr.   11  McCallum   4  Garrett Jr.  Madison Square Garden (14,830)
New York City, NY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

References

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  1. ^ Ecker, Danny (November 16, 2016). "DePaul strikes arena naming rights deal with Wintrust". Crain's Chicago Business. Retrieved November 17, 2016.
  2. ^ Pope, LaMond. "DePaul to open new downtown arena against longtime rival Notre Dame". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
  3. ^ "Villanova Picked Unanimously Again To Win In Preseason Coaches' Poll". Big East Conference. Retrieved February 8, 2017.