The 2003–04

Big East Conference The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...

men's basketball season was the 25th in conference history, and involved its 14 full-time member schools.

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

was the regular-season champion with a record of .

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

won both the Big East tournament championship and the national championship.

Season summary & highlights

* After three seasons with a divisional structure, the Big East returned to a unitary structure this season. *

was the regular-season champion with a record of . It was Pittsburgh's fifth conference championship or co-championship and second outright championship. * Pittsburgh won its sixth Big East tournament championship. * Connecticut won its second national championship. It was the second consecutive national championship for the Big East Conference,

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

having won the previous season. * Connecticut junior

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

Ben Gordon was the 2004 NCAA Tournament's top scorer. * Connecticut junior

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

Emeka Okafor Chukwuemeka Ndubuisi Okafor (born September 28, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. Okafor attended Bellaire High School in Bellaire, Texas and the University of Connecticut, where in 2004 he won a national championship. ...

was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2004 NCAA Tournament. * After suffering a 20-point loss at Pittsburgh on February 4, 2004, a number of St. John's players broke

curfew A curfew is an order that imposes certain regulations during specified hours. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to remain indoors during the evening and nighttime hours. Such an order is most often issued by public authorit ...

to visit an adult club and invited a woman they met there back to their

hotel for sex. After they had sex with her, she demanded payment for it from them, and they refused. She then called police and claimed the players had gang-raped her, but police soon charged her with

prostitution Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, no ...

and filing a false police report. Meanwhile, St. John's University deemed the players' action to be in violation of team rules and "inconsistent with St. John's mission and values," and expelled or suspended six of them, leaving the Red Storm with only four available scholarship players. The scandal rocked the St. John's men's basketball program, and the team stumbled to a 6–21 finish. * In March 2004, St. John's

Abe Keita claimed that a member of the team's staff had paid him nearly $300 a month for the past four seasons. As a result, on November 26, 2004, St. John's placed itself on two years' probation, withdrew from postseason consideration for the 2004–05 season, and vacated 43 wins in which Keita participated, including the team's

2003 National Invitation Tournament The 2003 National Invitation Tournament was the 2003 edition of the annual NCAA college basketball competition. This was the last NIT to include a third-place game until 2021. During the following season, St. John's center Abe Keita revealed ...

championship. St. John's became the third team in the history of the NIT to be forced to vacate its standing in the tournament. * The season was the last in the Big East for

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

and Virginia Tech, both of which departed for the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...

after the end of the season. Miami had been a member of the Big East for 13 seasons, and Virginia Tech left after four years in the Big East. Miami and Virginia Tech became the first schools ever to leave the Big East.

Head coaches

Rankings

Connecticut and Pittsburgh were ranked in the Associated Press poll Top 25 all season, with Connecticut reaching No. 1. Connecticut finished the season ranked No. 7 and Pittsburgh finished as No. 9. Boston College, Notre Dame, Providence, and Syracuse also spent time in the Top 25, and all but Notre Dame were ranked at the end of the season.

Regular-season statistical leaders

Postseason

Big East tournament

Seeding

Teams were seeded in the Big East tournament based on conference record and tiebreakers. The No. 5 through No. 12 seeds played in the first round, and the No. 1 through No. 4 seeds received byes into the quarterfinal round. Teams which finished in 13th place or lower in the conference after the application as necessary of tiebreakers did not qualify for the tournament Seeding was and Miami — which finished the regular season tied for 12th but lost its tiebreaker with Georgetown — and 14th-place St. John's did not qualify for the tournament.

Bracket

NCAA tournament

Six Big East teams received bids to the NCAA Tournament. Providence lost in the first round and Boston College and Seton Hall in the second round. Pittsburgh and Syracuse were defeated in the regional semifinals. Connecticut won the national championship. Connecticut junior

Ben Gordon was the tournament's top scorer with 154 points, and Connecticut junior

was the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

National Invitation Tournament

Four Big East teams received bids to the

National Invitation Tournament The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) is an annual men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Since 2023, all rounds of the tournament are played at various sites across the country whi ...

, which did not yet have

seeding The term seeding and related terms such as seeded are used in several different contexts: *Sowing, planting seeds in a place or on an object *Cloud seeding, manipulating cloud formations *Seeding (computing), a concept in computing and peer-to-pee ...

. They played in two of the tournament's four unnamed brackets. Notre Dame lost in the quarterfinals. Rutgers defeated West Virginia in the second round and Villanova in the quarterfinals and finished as the tournament runner-up, losing to

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

in the final.

Awards and honors

Big East Conference

Player of the Year Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year. In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award. Association football In association football, this award is held on b ...

: *

, Connecticut, C, Jr.

Defensive Player of the Year Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY or DPOTY) is the name of an award given in sports for outstanding defensive play by a single player over the course of a season. Many sports leagues award this type of award. League awards for Defensive Player o ...

: * Emeka Okafor, Connecticut, C, Jr. Rookie of the Year: *

Chris Taft Chris Taft (born March 10, 1985) is an American basketball player. NCAA career Chris Taft was born in Brooklyn, New York, and began his college career at the University of Pittsburgh after graduating from Xaverian High School in Brooklyn. Taft ...

, Pittsburgh, F, Fr. Most Improved Player: *

Carl Krauser Carl Isaac Krauser (born May 13, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player who last played for the Quebec Kebs of the National Basketball League of Canada. He was a point guard for the University of Pittsburgh, University of Pittsb ...

, Pittsburgh, G, So.

Coach of the Year Many sports leagues, sportswriting associations, and other organizations confer "Coach of the Year" awards. In some sports — including baseball and association football — the award is called the "Manager of the Year" award. Some of the ...

: *

Jamie Dixon James Patrick Dixon II (born November 10, 1965) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach of the TCU Horned Frogs men's team, where he played college ball. He previously served as the head coach of the University of Pittsburg ...

, Pittsburgh (1st season) All-Big East First Team * Ben Gordon, Connecticut, G, Jr., , ,

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

, N.Y. * Bryant Matthews, Virginia Tech, F, Sr., , , Columbia, S.C. *

Hakim Warrick Hakim Hanif Warrick (born July 8, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Syracuse Orange from 2001 to 2005. Warrick won an NCAA championship in 2003 and blocked a potential game-tying thr ...

, Syracuse, F, Jr., , ,

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Pa. * Andre Barrett, Seton Hall, G, Sr., , ,

The Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, N.Y. *

Ryan Gomes Ryan Anthony Gomes (born September 1, 1982) is an American college basketball coach and former professional player who is currently an assistant coach for the Providence Friars. He was named a First Team All-American power forward at Providence C ...

, Providence, F, Jr., , ,

Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Waterbury had a population of 114,403 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. The city is southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury i ...

, Conn. *

, Connecticut, C, Jr., , ,

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, Tex. * Craig Smith, Boston College, F, So., , ,

Inglewood Inglewood may refer to: Places Australia *Inglewood, Queensland * Shire of Inglewood, Queensland, a former local government area *Inglewood, South Australia *Inglewood, Victoria *Inglewood, Western Australia Canada * Inglewood, Ontario *Inglewoo ...

, Calif. All-Big East Second Team: * Chris Thomas, Notre Dame, G, Jr., , ,

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

, Ind. *

, Pittsburgh, G, So., , , The Bronx, N.Y. * Jaron Brown, Pittsburgh, G, Sr., , , Lexington, Ky. *

Darius Rice Darius Lashaun Rice (born October 16, 1982) is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Miami. He is the nephew of former professional football player, Jerry Rice. College career Rice played c ...

, Miami, F, Sr., , ,

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

, Miss. *

Gerry McNamara Gerry McNamara (born August 28, 1983) is an American former basketball player and current head coach of the Siena Saints men's basketball team. Gerry is the former associate head coach of the Syracuse University men's basketball team. A forme ...

, Syracuse, G, So., , ,

Scranton Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

, Pa. All-Big East Third Team: *

, Pittsburgh, F, Fr., , ,

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, N.Y. *

Hervé Lamizana Hervé Mamadou Lamizana (born January 22, 1981) is an Ivorian former professional basketball player who also has French nationality. College career Lamizana played for the St. Patrick's basketball team in high school in Elizabeth, New Jersey, ...

, Rutgers, F, Sr., , ,

Abidjan Abidjan ( , ; N'Ko script, N'ko: ߊߓߌߖߊ߲߬) is the largest city and the former capital of Ivory Coast. As of the Demographics of Ivory Coast, 2021 census, Abidjan's population was 6.3 million, which is 21.5 percent of the overall population ...

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...

* Gerald Riley, Georgetown, G, Sr., , , Milledgeville, Ga. *

Allan Ray Allan Nathaniel Ray (born June 17, 1984) is an American sports agent and former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for four years at Villanova University. He played one season ( 2006–07) with the Boston Celtics of th ...

, Villanova, G, So., , , The Bronx, N.Y. *

Curtis Sumpter Curtis Sumpter (born January 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player currently working as an assistant coach for the Delaware 87ers of the NBA G League. A 6'7" forward from Brooklyn, New York, Sumpter was named to the All-Big East ...

, Villanova, F, So., , , Brooklyn, N.Y. Big East All-Rookie Team: * Jared Dudley, Boston College, F, Fr., , ,

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, Calif. *

Charlie Villanueva Charlie Alexander Villanueva Mejia (born August 24, 1984) is a Dominican-American former professional basketball player who played for the Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks, Detroit Pistons and Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Associat ...

, Connecticut, F, Fr., , , Brooklyn, N.Y. * Josh Boone, Connecticut, C, Fr., , , Mount Airy, Md. * Guillermo Diaz, Miami, G, Fr., , ,

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, Pittsburgh, F, Fr., , , Brooklyn, N.Y. *

Quincy Douby Quincy Douby (born May 16, 1984) is an American-born, naturalized Montenegrin former professional basketball player. At , , Douby played shooting guard for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. The Sacramento Kings made him the 19th selection of the 2006 ...

, Rutgers, G, Fr., , , Brooklyn, N.Y. * Mike Nardi, Villanova, G, Fr., , , Linden, N.J.

All-Americans

The following players were selected to the 2004 Associated Press All-America teams. Consensus All-America First Team: *

, Providence, Key Stats: 18.9 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.6 spg, 50.7 FG%, 33.3 3P%, 547 points *

, Connecticut, Key Stats: 17.6 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 4.1 bpg, 59.9 FG%, 635 points First Team All-America: * Ryan Gomes, Providence, Key Stats: 18.9 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.6 spg, 50.7 FG%, 33.3 3P%, 547 points * Emeka Okafor, Connecticut, Key Stats: 17.6 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 4.1 bpg, 59.9 FG%, 635 points Third Team All-America: *

, Syracuse, Key Stats: 19.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.1 bpg, 51.2 FG%, 615 points AP Honorable Mention * Andre Barrett, Seton Hall * Ben Gordon, Connecticut *

, Pittsburgh * Bryant Matthews, Virginia Tech * Chris Thomas, Notre Dame

Notes

References

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