2018–19 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team

The 2018–19 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team represented DePaul University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by fourth-year (seventh overall with DePaul) head coach Dave Leitao and played their home games at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago as members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 19–17, 7–11 in Big East play to finish in a three-way tie for last place. As the No. 10 seed in the Big East tournament, they lost in the first round to St. John's. They received a bid to the College Basketball Invitational where they defeated Central Michigan, Longwood, and Coastal Carolina to advance to the championship series against South Florida. There, in a best-of-three series, they lost to South Florida two games to one.[1][2][3]

2018–19 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball
CBI, Runner-up
ConferenceBig East Conference
Record19–17 (7–11 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaWintrust Arena
McGrath–Phillips Arena
Seasons
2018–19 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 23 Villanova 13 5   .722 26 10   .722
Marquette 12 6   .667 24 10   .706
Seton Hall 9 9   .500 20 14   .588
Xavier 9 9   .500 19 16   .543
Creighton 9 9   .500 20 15   .571
Georgetown 9 9   .500 19 14   .576
St. John's 8 10   .444 21 13   .618
Providence 7 11   .389 18 16   .529
Butler 7 11   .389 16 17   .485
DePaul 7 11   .389 19 17   .528
2019 Big East tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

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The Blue Demons finished the 2017–18 season 11–20, 4–14 in Big East play to finish in a tie for ninth place. They lost in the first round of the Big East tournament to Marquette.[4]

Offseason

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Departures

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Justin Roberts 0 G 6'0" 170 Freshman Indianapolis, IN Transferred to Georgia State
Austin Grandstaff 1 G 6'2" 185 RS Sophomore Rockwall, TX Transferred to Texas A&M–Commerce
Brandon Cyrus 4 G 6'5" 190 Sophomore Toronto, ON Transferred to UC Santa Barbara
Tre'Darius McCallum 10 F 6'7" 220 RS Senior Myrtle Beach, SC Graduated
Tobias Dwimaah 22 F 6'5" 220 Senior Chicago, IL Graduated
Peter Ryckbosch 30 F 6'10" 230 RS Senior Chicago, IL Graduated
Joe Hanel 33 F 6'7" 218 Senior Savage, MN Graduated
Marin Maric 34 C 6'11" 240 RS Senior Split, Croatia Graduated

Incoming transfers

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Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous School
Lyrik Shreiner 0 G 6'3 190 Junior Phoenix, AZ Cal State Northridge
Darious Hall 13 F 6'6 210 Sophomore Little Rock, AR Arkansas
Femi Olujobi 25 F 6'8" 233 RS Senior Long Island, NY North Carolina A&T

2018 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
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
George Maslennikov
PF
Ukraine Holy Spirit Preparatory School 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (100 kg) May 4, 2016 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    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:

  • "2018 DePaul Signees". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
  • "2018 DePaul Signees". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
  • "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 9, 2017.

2019 recruiting class

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US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Romeo Weems
G/F
New Haven, MI New Haven High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) May 23, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:     ESPN grade: 89
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:

Roster

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2018–19 DePaul Blue Demons men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Lyrik Shreiner 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Jr Hillcrest Academy
TCU
CSUN
Phoenix, AZ
F 2 Jaylen Butz 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 224 lb (102 kg) So North Side Fort Wayne, IN
G 3 Devin Gage 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS So Curie Chicago, IL
F 4 Paul Reed 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Wekiva Orlando, FL
G 5 Jalen Coleman-Lands 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Jr La Lumiere School
Illinois
Indianapolis, IN
G 11 Eli Cain 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr St. Benedict's Prep Willingboro, NJ
G 12 Jason Malonga (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Benet Academy Bolingbrook, IL
F 13 Darious Hall   6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Mills University Studies
Arkansas
Little Rock, AR
G 21 Flynn Cameron 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 198 lb (90 kg) RS Fr Hillcrest Christian College Auckland, New Zealand
F 22 George Maslennikov 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 234 lb (106 kg) Fr Holy Spirit Prep Odesa, Ukraine
F 23 Mick Sullivan (W) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 241 lb (109 kg) Fr Marmion Academy Aurora, IL
F 25 Femi Olujobi 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 258 lb (117 kg) RS Sr Brentwood
North Carolina A&T
Long Island, NY
G 31 Max Strus 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) RS Sr Amos Alonzo Stagg
Lewis University
Hickory Hills, IL
G 33 John Diener 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 203 lb (92 kg) Fr Cedarburg Cedarburg, WI
G 35 Pantelis Xidias (W) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) So La Lumiere Michigan City, IN
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
November 1, 2018*
7:00 pm
Rockhurst W 72–65 
 19  Cain   11  Reed   5  Tied  Wintrust Arena (3,624)
Chicago, IL
Non-conference regular season
November 7, 2018*
6:30 pm, FS1
Bethune–Cookman W 80–58  1–0
 25  Strus   8  Reed   8  Cain  Wintrust Arena (3,710)
Chicago, IL
November 12, 2018*
7:30 pm, FS1
Morgan State W 91–63  2–0
 25  Strus   9  Tied   9  Gage  Wintrust Arena (3,664)
Chicago, IL
November 15, 2018*
8:00 pm, FS1
Penn State
Gavitt Tipoff Games
W 72–70 OT 3–0
 21  Strus   15  Butz   6  Cain  Wintrust Arena (3,926)
Chicago, IL
November 24, 2018*
11:00 am, ACCN Extra
at Notre Dame L 70–95  3–1
 15  Strus   6  Tied   4  Cain  Edmund P. Joyce Center (6,751)
South Bend, IN
November 28, 2018*
7:00 pm, FS2
Cleveland State W 83–73  4–1
 26  Cain   8  Tied   7  Strus  Wintrust Arena (3,741)
Chicago, IL
December 3, 2018*
7:30 pm, FS1
Florida A&M W 65–50  5–1
 16  Olujobi   14  Reed   4  Cain  Wintrust Arena (3,763)
Chicago, IL
December 8, 2018*
11:00 am, BTN
at Northwestern L 68–75  5–2
 22  Olujobi   9  Strus   4  Tied  Welsh-Ryan Arena (7,039)
Evanston, IL
December 12, 2018*
7:00 pm, FS1
Chicago State W 104–70  6–2
 27  Strus   8  Strus   11  Cain  Wintrust Arena (3,729)
Chicago, IL
December 14, 2018*
6:00 pm, FS1
UIC W 90–70  7–2
 34  Strus   13  Strus   5  Gage  Wintrust Arena (4,136)
Chicago, IL
December 19, 2018*
7:30 pm, FS2
Incarnate Word W 81–71  8–2
 20  Cain   6  Reed   6  Gage  Wintrust Arena (3,705)
Chicago, IL
December 22, 2018*
2:30 pm, FS1
Boston College L 62–65  8–3
 16  Strus   11  Reed   4  Tied  Wintrust Arena (4,741)
Chicago, IL
Big East regular season
December 29, 2018
1:00 pm, FS1
Xavier L 65–74  8–4
(0–1)
 17  Reed   9  Reed   3  Shreiner  Wintrust Arena (5,632)
Chicago, IL
January 2, 2019
7:30 pm, FS1
at Villanova L 68–73  8–5
(0–2)
 16  Tied   8  Strus   5  Gage  Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Villanova, PA
January 6, 2019
12:00 pm, FS1
Seton Hall W 75–74  9–5
(1–2)
 21  Strus   9  Tied   6  Gage  Wintrust Arena (4,068)
Chicago, IL
January 12, 2019
5:00 pm, CBSSN
at No. 24 St. John's W 79–71  10–5
(2–2)
 27  Olujobi   12  Strus   4  Gage  Carnesecca Arena (5,602)
Queens, NY
January 16, 2019
8:30 pm, FS1
Butler L 69–87  10–6
(2–3)
 23  Olujobi   12  Reed   4  Tied  Wintrust Arena (4,616)
Chicago, IL
January 19, 2019
7:00 pm, FS1
at Seton Hall W 97–93  11–6
(3–3)
 22  Tied   14  Reed   3  Tied  Prudential Center (9,023)
Newark, NJ
January 23, 2019
7:30 pm, FS1
at No. 12 Marquette L 69–79  11–7
(3–4)
 18  Reed   11  Olujobi   5  Tied  Fiserv Forum (14,283)
Milwaukee, WI
January 27, 2019
11:00 am, FS1
at Providence L 67–70  11–8
(3–5)
 20  Reed   9  Reed   5  Gage  Dunkin' Donuts Center (12,009)
Providence, RI
January 30, 2019
7:00 pm, CBSSN
No. 14 Villanova L 74–86  11–9
(3–6)
 20  Olujobi   8  Olujobi   6  Gage  Wintrust Arena (5,002)
Chicago, IL
February 2, 2019
1:30 pm, FS1
Providence W 67–55  12–9
(4–6)
 18  Reed   15  Reed   4  Cain  Wintrust Arena (5,173)
Chicago, IL
February 9, 2019
7:00 pm, FS1
at Xavier W 74–62  13–9
(5–6)
 17  Strus   9  Olujobi   4  Gage  Cintas Center (10,242)
Cincinnati, OH
February 12, 2019
7:30 pm, FSN
No. 10 Marquette L 73–92  13–10
(5–7)
 16  Strus   11  Reed   4  Gage  Wintrust Arena (6,836)
Chicago, IL
February 16, 2019
7:00 pm, FS1
at Butler L 78–91  13–11
(5–8)
 23  Strus   8  Butz   4  Cain  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,100)
Indianapolis, IN
February 20, 2019
8:00 pm, FSN
Creighton L 67–79  13–12
(5–9)
 18  Strus   8  Strus   4  Cain  Wintrust Arena (4,238)
Chicago, IL
February 27, 2019
6:05 pm, CBSSN
at Georgetown L 73–82  13–13
(5–10)
 25  Strus   12  Reed   5  Gage  Capital One Arena (5,176)
Washington, D.C.
March 3, 2019
11:00 am, FS1
St. John's W 92–83  14–13
(6–10)
 43  Strus   10  Olujobi   5  Cain  Wintrust Arena (5,376)
Chicago, IL
March 6, 2019
7:45 pm, FS1
Georgetown W 101–69  15–13
(7–10)
 30  Strus   10  Reed   10  Gage  Wintrust Arena (4,756)
Chicago, IL
March 9, 2019
7:00 pm, FS1
at Creighton L 78–91  15–14
(7–11)
 19  Tied   10  Reed   10  Gage  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,083)
Omaha, NE
Big East tournament
March 13, 2019
8:30 pm, FS1
(10) vs. (7) St. John’s
First Round
L 74–82  15–15
 23  Cain   14  Butz   5  Butz  Madison Square Garden (19,812)
New York City, NY
College Basketball Invitational
March 20, 2019*
7:00 pm
Central Michigan
First round
W 100–86  16–15
 33  Strus   12  Butz   7  Cain  McGrath–Phillips Arena (1,173)
Chicago, IL
March 25, 2019*
7:00 pm, NBCSC+
Longwood
Quarterfinals
W 97–89  17–15
 38  Strus   12  Reed   2  Tied  McGrath–Phillips Arena (1,040)
Chicago, IL
March 27, 2019*
7:00 pm
Coastal Carolina
Semifinals
W 92–87  18–15
 24  Tied   8  Olujobi   6  Shreiner  McGrath–Phillips Arena (939)
Chicago, IL
April 1, 2019*
6:00 pm, ESPNU
at South Florida
Finals – Game 1
L 61–63  18–16
 19  Cain   12  Reed   3  Tied  Yuengling Center (2,375)
Tampa, FL
April 3, 2019*
7:00 pm, ESPNU
South Florida
Finals – Game 2
W 100–96 OT 19–16
 32  Strus   16  Reed   7  Shreiner  McGrath–Phillips Arena (1,704)
Chicago, IL
April 5, 2019*
6:00 pm, ESPNU
South Florida
Finals – Game 3
L 65–77  19–17
 19  Gage   10  Olujobi   3  Cameron  McGrath–Phillips Arena (1,876)
Chicago, IL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

References

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