The final record of 15-17 wasn’t nearly as bad as the way the season finished. But either way, it was a season where virtually nobody thought Tulsa would have a realistic chance at postseason.

Tulsa’s first losing season in 11 years, and only fifth in the last 37, was a downer, for certain. And losing 10 of its last 14 games while not being competitive in most of those late season losses was tough to watch after an impressive 6-2 start in conference play.

But much more important: where does the program go from here? Let’s be positive and start out with what went right in TU coach Frank Haith’s third season.

Rutgers transfer Junior Etou, although inconsistent, was TU’s leading scorer and rebounder at 12.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. Those averages increased to 13.4 and 6.9 in AAC play. He could be an even bigger threat next year with more support from his teammates

Etou’s three-point percentage of 42.7 percent overall and 45.6 in conference play was outstanding, especially for a forward, and he does well when he drives to the basket, although he’s not really a post-up player.

The 6-foot-7 Etou showed significant improvement over his time at Rutgers, where he had been decent. He should be set up for a terrific senior season.

Martins Igbanu was the most pleasant surprise on the team. Although probably not really as tall as his listed 6-8, he has shown he has plenty of moves that can work against much taller defenders.

Averaging 6.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per game as a freshman is strong, especially when his averages were 7.8 and 4.7 in conference play, and he averaged 10 points in the last 12 games. Igbanu also showed he can shoot from the outside, making five of nine attempts, with Haith telling him to shoot more.

Having only played basketball since he was 14-years-old, Igbanu could show marked improvement next season. And when the coaches call him a team leader as a freshman, that bodes well for the future.

Will Magnay peaked out midway through his freshman season. Nagging injuries held him back, but the 6-10 Aussie showed that a frontline of himself and Igbanu could be the AAC’s best by the time the two are upperclassmen.

TK Edogi had a mixed year. Great expectations were placed on the athletic Edogi after redshirting in 2016, but he did show improvement from his sophomore season.

However, since Edogi was fourth in the pecking order among post players, he has decided to use his graduate transfer option instead of returning as a fifth-year senior. The redshirt season of 2016 is now a waste for TU.

Edogi's departure makes way for playing time for Geno Artison. The 6-9 sophomore junior college transfer played the four spot but was almost exclusively a perimeter player as a stretch four. In limited time, he hit nine three-pointers in 17 games but did little else. He is athletic, and with the opportunity for more playing time, will get a chance to show why he was recruited.

With Etou, Igbanu, Magnay and Artison returning, the inside game should be improved, and definitely a strength, something that could not be said about the guards, as we move on to the less positive aspects of the season.

When was the last time Tulsa didn’t have a guard average in double figures in scoring for the season or in conference play? Honestly, having watched Tulsa basketball since 1970, I didn’t think there had ever been a year when it didn‘t happen. And considering the 1960’s featured some really strong guards, maybe the 1950’s or 1940’s?

Upon further review, the 2005 squad’s top-scoring guard, Brett McDade, came in at 9.6 points per game. Most TU fans try to forget that year, as the team finished 9-20. That was the only year in more than 50 seasons where TU has not had a guard average in double-digits.

Even the worst Tulsa team in last 68 years, the 1977 Golden Hurricane which finished 6-21, featured a high scoring guard named Teko Wynder who was an NBA draftee with a cool, slanted afro.

It is not that the 2017 Golden Hurricane didn’t have any guards that can play. But there was very little offense or defense out of the guards.

Missed open shots were contagious, as was defense that featured letting opposing guards have wide-open shots while their players didn’t even have to move to get open. How many wide-open shots can fans stand to watch where the opponent just stands around waiting to catch the ball while Tulsa’s rotation defense fails again?

The best of the guards was clearly point guard Sterling Taplin. Only a sophomore, he averaged 9.2 points and was solid at the point. He has a bright future, and would have fared better if he had more help. His percentages of 40.3 from three-point range and 84.5 on free throws were impressive.

Taplin proved he could drive to the basket and make tough shots, and he came through several times in the clutch. Too often, however, it looked like Taplin would force the issue on his drives because there was so little offense from the perimeter.

The next best guard was junior college transfer Jaleel Wheeler, who had some really nice moments while averaging 9.3 points. He could drive to the basket, but too often turned the ball over, and had trouble making open three-pointers, coming in at 29.5 percent.

Another juco transfer, Corey Henderson, was hot-and-cold. When hot, he could light it up from the outside and had some strong moments. The combo guard is a good free throw shooter, which bodes well for the end of games. He averaged 8.7 points while shooting 33.8 percent behind the arc.

However, Henderson was wildly inconsistent, like many of his teammates. And he looked much better as a shooting guard than at the point. The team looked lost when Taplin wasn’t in the game.

The most disappointing season came from Tulsa’s lone senior, Pat Birt, who averaged 8.8 points. When Birt was making shots, Tulsa was tough. But most frequently, Birt lost his shooting touch despite playing a lot of minutes. And Tulsa desperately needed his scoring, and expected it after he averaged 12 points per game in 2016, which included 15.3 per game during conference play.

In the long view, Birt’s recruitment out of the juco ranks still remains a positive. His addition to a team with nine seniors was exactly what the 2016 team needed. Tulsa clearly doesn’t make the NCAA tourney last year without Birt.

Birt struggled without playing alongside accomplished guards Juice Woodard and Shaq Harrison. Without them to draw attention away from him, he was less effective.

More disappointing than Birt’s season was the failure down the stretch for any of Tulsa’s freshman guards to make outside shots. Lawson Korita, Travis Atson and Joseph Battle were all billed as outstanding shooters, but they all had trouble scoring.

Korita had a very promising start. Averaging nearly five points per game at one time, Korita was hampered by injury at the end of the season. He scored in only one of the final 14 games of the season while playing 10 of those games. His 26.2 three-point percentage was discouraging, as were his final scoring averages of 2.8 in the regular season and 1.3 in conference play.

Not surprisingly, Atson and Battle decided to transfer, as there appeared to be little chance for them to get playing time. Also, TU had over-recruited by two players, so transfers were inevitable.

Atson played well against ORU with 10 points, but rarely could hit a shot in other games. Battle had a few nice drives to the bucket, but played very little.

Walk-on guard Corey Haith played an average of 2.7 minutes per game while healthy, and Frank Haith’s son had a positive effect on the team. The team was 9-6 in games he played, and was 6-11 without him.He missed the last 13 games due to injury. Haith could be granted a hardship waiver for a sixth season of eligibility due to being injured most of last season.

The most important addition to the lineup next season could be Charlotte transfer Curran Scott. The Edmond Memorial graduate is exactly the type of player Tulsa needs - one that can shoot the basketball.

The 6-4 Scott averaged 10.5 points per game as a freshman for Charlotte, including a 30-point game. He shot 44 percent from three-point land. He should immediately start, and will be an upgrade at shooting guard.

Junior college transfer Daquan Jeffries is another type of player Tulsa needs. He has major college experience as a starter for ORU before transferring to Western Texas. The 6-5 Edmond Memorial graduate and former teammate of Scott’s is athletic and will increase Tulsa’s talent level.

Jeffries’ field goal percentage of around 65 percent is ridiculously high, and considering he is likely to replace Birt in the starting lineup, this is a considerable upgrade since Birt shot less than 10 percent on two-pointers during a long stretch at the end of the season. Jeffries averages around 15 points and shoots around 30 percent on three pointers at Western Texas.

Scott and Jeffries alone should make Tulsa an improved team, especially when Tulsa’s returning young players should be better with a year of experience. The team should be more cohesive, with the core having played together for a year.

The two expected newcomers from high school, Elijah Joiner and Darien Jackson, both appear to have strong credentials and athleticism, and will vie for playing time. Talented freshmen are needed on any team, but especially on a team that is coming off a subpar season.

Joiner should get playing time at point guard and possibly at shooting guard. The 6-3 early signee from Chicago can shoot and appears to be a strong candidate for playing time.

Jackson is a 6-4 shooting guard/wing from Overland Park, Kansas, who is terrific at driving to the basket, and can light up the board with points. A summer of working on his outside shot will increase the TU commitment’s chances for playing time.

With Edogi's transfer, Tulsa has another scholarship to offer. Given Tulsa's trouble scoring this year, another scorer would come in handy. No matter how the scholarship is used, it is imperative that it is not wasted.

The additions of Jeffries and Scott alone, along with the improvement of the returning players, should mean definite improvement in 2018. If Jackson and/or Joiner make waves as freshmen, that could seriously bump up any future projections.

The best thing about the 15-17 record of 2017 is that it wasn’t a single-digit disastrous win total that can happen in the third year of a coach’s tenure when he had two good seasons with inherited talent. That was the case with previous coaches J.D. Barnett and John Phillips.

The pieces are already in place for a much better season in 2018. A minimum of an NIT bid for next year is realistic to expect.