A new era began April 7, 2008 when the University of San Francisco named Rex Walters head coach of the men's basketball program. The former Kansas star and NBA veteran hit the ground running and entering his third season on the Hilltop, every player on the 2010-11 roster was recruited to USF by Walters and his coaching staff. San Francisco has added talented size and versatile perimeter players from outstanding prep programs and all look prepared to follow Walters' challenge: Play hard. Play smart. Play together.

UPPER ECHELON FINISH HIGHLIGHTS YEAR TWO
San Francisco made strides during the second year of its rebuilding process under Coach Walters. After opening the season with back-to-back home wins, the Dons struggled through a stretch where it played nine of 12 non-conference games on the road. USF showed its resiliency by posting a solid showing in a much-improved West Coast Conference. The Green and Gold opened the league campaign with a 2-1 record with wins against San Diego and at eventual postseason participant Loyola Marymount.

USF closed the league campaign on a tear, winning four of five highlighted by a thrilling 81-77 overtime upset victory against No. 13/8 Gonzaga. The Dons seized a 72-70 road overtime win at San Diego the next time out and then swept the final homestand of the year against the Lions and Pepperdine. San Francisco posted its third and final overtime triumph in a 71-68 cliffhanger at ancient Bay Area rival Santa Clara.

San Francisco posted its best league record (7-7) and finish (fourth) since 2007. Other improvements under Walters in year two included increases in scoring (+2.8), field goal percentage (.447 vs. .433 in 2008-09) and rebounding (+3.9).

MAKING STRIDES IN YEAR ONE
In his first season at USF, Walters took over a full blown rebuilding project with just six returning letter-winners and two starters returning. Despite the challenges, Walters directed the Dons to a 5-1 start - the best for the Green and Gold since 1999-00 - and directed USF to its first winning non-conference season since 2004-05.

Along the way, San Francisco won the 2008 Verizon Wireless Tipoff Classic and defeated two conference champions - Boise State (WAC) and UC Santa Barbara (Big West). The road victory by the Dons at Hawaii was the first non-conference true road triumph since the 2005-06 campaign and the first win against the Rainbow Warriors since 1988. With the win in the Islands, Walters became the first Dons boss to win his coaching debut since Jim Brovelli in 1985.

In his first season in San Francisco, Walters coached All-West Coast Conference First Team selection Dior Lowhorn, who led the league in scoring for the second consecutive season (20.1). First year Dons recruited by Walters and his staff made 101 of a possible 150 starts in 2008-09 and averaged a combined 35.1 points, 16.9 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game. USF's first year players accounted for more than half of the team's scoring (.518) and rebounding (.528) and chipped in more than 70 percent of the total assists.

Walters and his staff are committed to success in the classroom as well and four Dons earned selection to the 2008-09 WCC Commissioner's Honor Roll. The overall team GPA made a jump from the previous year and USF was represented on the WCC Winter All-Academic Team.

BUILDING A WINNER AT FLORIDA ATLANTIC
Coach Walters comes to USF from Florida Atlantic University. In his first season at the helm, Walters guided Florida Atlantic to its second consecutive winning season. It was the first time the program posted back-to-back winning campaigns since the team had three straight years of winning basketball from 1989-90 to 1991-92.

In 2006-07, the Owls won 10 Sun Belt Conference games, the third-most for a first-year Sun Belt member. The team also set a program scoring record, averaging 74.9 points per game. Two of Walters' student-athletes were named Second Team All-Sun Belt, the first student-athletes honored with a major postseason distinction under his direction.

The Owls were 15-18 and 8-10 in Sun Belt Conference play in 2007-08. Prior to Florida Atlantic, Walters' first collegiate coaching job came at Valparaiso, a two-year stint as an assistant under Homer Drew. The 2003-04 Hornets were 18-13 overall and advanced to the NCAA Tournament after capturing the Mid-Continent Conference with a record of 11-5.

BEGINNING THE COACHING JOURNEY
Walters' coaching career began in 2002-03 in Overland Park, Kansas, where he served as an assistant coach for the Blue Valley Northwest High School team that reached the Kansas Class 6A State Tournament.

Walters' pedigree for coaching began as a player, receiving tutelage from some of the game's legendary coaches. Roy Williams at the University of Kansas and the NBA's Chuck Daly, Larry Brown and Pat Riley all mentored Walters during his years as a player.

ROCK, CHALK...
He first made his name known in college, starring for two seasons at Kansas. In 68 starts under Williams, he averaged 15.6 points per game, leading the Jayhawks in scoring during both his junior and senior campaigns. KU combined to go 56-12 overall in 1991-92 and 1992-93, winning back-to-back Big Eight titles, capped by a trip to the 1993 Final Four. Walters was named to the All-Big Eight team both seasons and was Big Eight Male Athlete of the Year as a senior in 1993.

As a junior, Walters averaged 16.0 points per game as the Jayhawks went 27-5. In his senior season, KU had a record of 29-7, with Walters scoring at a clip of 15.3 points per game. Walters was an outstanding scorer from all areas of the court at Kansas, shooting nearly 51% from the field, 42% from three-point range and 85% at the free throw line. His college career originally began at Northwestern University, where he earned honorable mention from the Big 10 in 1989-90 after leading the team in scoring (17.6 ppg), three-point shooting (47.3%), free throw shooting (79.4%) and assists (125) as a sophomore.

It was during his senior season at Kansas that Walters made his first connection with Matt Doherty, who joined the team as an assistant coach. The two reunited again for Doherty's single season at FAU, opening the door for Walters' move to the top.

After graduating from Kansas in 1993 with a B.S. in education, Walters was selected by New Jersey as the 16th overall pick in the 1993 NBA Draft. He went on to play seven seasons in total with the Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and Miami Heat, averaging 4.6 points and 1.7 assists per game in 13.7 minutes.

Walters averaged a career-best 6.8 points per game for Philadelphia in 1996-97, and made 67 career starts in 335 games. His career assist-to-turnover ratio was nearly two-to-one. He was New Jersey's top three-point shooter in 1994-95 (36.2%) and Philadelphia's top long-range marksman in 1996-97 (38.5%). A fierce competitor, Walters averaged 12.8 points and 7.3 assists per game in eight starts for the 76ers to end the 1995-96 season.

Walters' professional career spanned nine seasons in total, ending in 2002 after playing internationally for two years and winning an American Basketball Association title with the Kansas City Knights.

BAY AREA NATIVE RETURNS
A prep star at Piedmont Hills High School in San Jose. Walters makes a welcome return to the Bay Area to begin his second Division I head coaching assignment. No stranger to the tradition and legacy of USF Basketball, Walters spent summers playing in pick-up games at War Memorial Gym while building an outstanding resume as a top collegiate player at Kansas.

THE PERSONAL FILE
Walters and his wife, Deanna, have five children: Addison (13), Drew (11), Riley (8), Gunner (6), and welcomed their fifth child, Ace Jordan (2), in June of 2008. The Walters family resides in San Francisco.