2002–03 NCAA Division I men's basketball season

2002–03 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
Preseason AP #1	Arizona Wildcats
Regular season	November 10, 2002– March 16, 2003
NCAA Tournament	2003
Tournament dates	March 17 – April 7, 2003
National Championship	Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana
NCAA Champions	Syracuse Orange
Other champions	St. John's Red Storm (NIT)
Player of the Year (Naismith, Wooden)	T. J. Ford, Texas

The 2002–03 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 10, 2002, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 2003 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Championship Game on April 7, 2003 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Syracuse Orange and coach Jim Boeheim won their first NCAA national championship with an 81–78 victory over the Kansas Jayhawks.

Season headlines

• The preseason AP All-American team was named on November 12. David West of Xavier was the leading vote-getter (43 of 72 votes). The rest of the team included Luke Walton (42 votes) and Jason Gardner (39) of Arizona, Kirk Hinrich of Kansas (35) and Erwin Dudley of Alabama (32).^[1]

Major rule changes

Beginning in 2002–03, the following rules changes were implemented:^[2]

• Two free-throw lane spaces closest to the free-thrower would remain unoccupied.
• No free throws were awarded to the offended team in bonus for personal fouls committed by a team while in team control or in possession of the ball during a throw-in (team-control foul).

Season outlook

Pre-season polls

The top 25 from the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Polls November 13, 2002.^[3]

Associated Press Ranking Team 1 Arizona (50) 2 Kansas (14) 3 Oklahoma (6) 4 Texas 5 Pittsburgh (1) 6 Duke 7 Florida 8 Alabama 9 Michigan State 10 Xavier 11 Oregon 12 Mississippi State (1) 13 Maryland 14 UCLA 15 Connecticut 16 Georgia 17 Kentucky 18 Marquette 19 Missouri 20 Western Kentucky 21 Indiana 22 Gonzaga 23 Cincinnati 24 Minnesota 25 Tulsa

ESPN/USA Today Coaches Ranking Team 1 Arizona (27) 2 Kansas (3) 3 Oklahoma (1) 4 Pittsburgh 5 Texas 6 Duke 7 Florida 8 Alabama 9 Oregon 10 Michigan State 11 Xavier 12 UCLA 13 Mississippi State 14 Connecticut 15 Maryland 16 Georgia 17 Kentucky 18 Missouri 19 Marquette 20 Cincinnati 21 Indiana 22 Gonzaga 23 Western Kentucky 24 Minnesota 25 Illinois

Regular season

Conference winners and tournaments

Conference	Regular Season Winner[4]	Conference Player of the Year	Conference Tournament	Tournament Venue (City)	Tournament Winner
America East Conference	Boston University	Taylor Coppenrath, Vermont[5]	2003 America East Men's Basketball Tournament	Walter Brown Arena (Boston, Massachusetts) (Except Finals)	Vermont[6]
Atlantic 10 Conference	St. Joseph's (East) Xavier (West)	David West, Xavier[7]	2003 Atlantic 10 Men's Basketball Tournament	University of Dayton Arena (Dayton, Ohio)	Dayton[8]
Atlantic Coast Conference	Wake Forest	Josh Howard, Wake Forest[9]	2003 ACC Men's Basketball Tournament	Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, North Carolina)	Duke[10]
Atlantic Sun Conference	Troy & Mercer	Adam Sonn, Belmont [11]	2003 Atlantic Sun Men's Basketball Tournament	GSU Sports Arena (Atlanta, Georgia)	Troy[11]
Big 12 Conference	Kansas	Nick Collison, Kansas[12]	2003 Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament	American Airlines Center (Dallas, Texas)	Oklahoma[13]
Big East Conference	Connecticut & Boston College (East) Syracuse & Pittsburgh (West)	Troy Bell, Boston College[14]	2003 Big East Men's Basketball Tournament	Madison Square Garden (New York City, New York)	Pittsburgh[14]
Big Sky Conference	Weber State	Jermaine Boyette, Weber State[15]	2003 Big Sky Men's Basketball Tournament	Dee Events Center (Ogden, Utah) (Semifinals and Finals)	Weber State[16]
Big South Conference	Winthrop	Torrey Butler, Coastal Carolina[17]	2003 Big South Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Vines Center (Lynchburg, Virginia) (Semifinals and Finals)	UNC Asheville[17]
Big Ten Conference	Wisconsin	Brian Cook, Illinois[18]	2003 Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	United Center (Chicago, Illinois)	Illinois[18]
Big West Conference	UC Santa Barbara	Branduinn Fullove, UC Santa Barbara [19]	2003 Big West Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Anaheim Convention Center (Anaheim, California)	Utah State[19]
Colonial Athletic Association	UNC Wilmington	Brett Blizzard, UNC Wilmington[20]	2003 CAA Men's Basketball Tournament	Richmond Coliseum (Richmond, Virginia)	UNC Wilmington[20]
Conference USA	Marquette	Dwyane Wade, Marquette[21]	2003 Conference USA Men's Basketball Tournament	Freedom Hall (Louisville, Kentucky)	Louisville [22]
Horizon League	Butler	Willie Green, Detroit[23]	2003 Horizon League Men's Basketball Tournament	U.S. Cellular Arena (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) (Except First Round)	Wisconsin-Milwaukee[23]
Ivy League	Penn	Ugonna Onyekwe, Penn[24]	No Tournament
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference	Manhattan	Luis Flores, Manhattan[25]	2003 MAAC Men's Basketball Tournament	Sovereign Bank Arena (Trenton, New Jersey)	Manhattan[26]
Mid-American Conference	Kent State (East) Central Michigan (West)	Chris Kaman, Central Michigan[27]	2003 MAC Men's Basketball Tournament	Gund Arena (Cleveland, Ohio)	Central Michigan[27]
Mid-Continent Conference	Valparaiso	Mike Helms, Oakland[28]	2003 Mid-Continent Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Kemper Arena (Kansas City, Missouri)	IUPUI[29]
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference	South Carolina State	Ron Williamson, Howard[30]	2003 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Richmond Coliseum (Richmond, Virginia)	South Carolina State[31]
Missouri Valley Conference	Southern Illinois	Kyle Korver, Creighton [32]	2003 Missouri Valley Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Savvis Center (St. Louis, Missouri)	Creighton [33]
Mountain West Conference	Utah & BYU	Ruben Douglas, New Mexico [34]	2003 MWC Men's Basketball Tournament	Thomas & Mack Center (Paradise, Nevada)	Colorado State[35]
Northeast Conference	Wagner	Jermaine Hall, Wagner[36]	2003 Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Campus Sites	Wagner[37]
Ohio Valley Conference	Austin Peay & Morehead State	Ricky Minard, Morehead State[38]	2003 Ohio Valley Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Gaylord Entertainment Center (Nashville, Tennessee) (Semifinals and Finals)	Austin Peay[38]
Pacific-10 Conference	Arizona	Luke Ridnour, Oregon [39]	2003 Pacific-10 Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Staples Center (Los Angeles, California)	Oregon[40]
Patriot League	Holy Cross	Patrick Whearty, Holy Cross [41]	2003 Patriot League Men's Basketball Tournament	Campus Sites	Holy Cross[42]
Southeastern Conference	Kentucky (East) Mississippi State (West)	Keith Bogans, Kentucky (Coaches)[43] Ron Slay, Tennessee (AP)[44]	2003 SEC Men's Basketball Tournament	Louisiana Superdome (New Orleans, Louisiana)	Kentucky[45]
Southern Conference	East Tennessee State, Appalachian State & Davidson (North) Charleston (South)	Troy Wheless, Charleston[46]	2003 Southern Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	North Charleston Coliseum (North Charleston, South Carolina)	East Tennessee State[47]
Southland Conference	Sam Houston State	Donald Cole, Sam Houston State[48]	2003 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Bernard Johnson Coliseum (Huntsville, Texas) (Finals)	Sam Houston State[48]
Southwestern Athletic Conference	Prairie View A&M	Gregory Burks, Prairie View A&M [49]	2003 Southwestern Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Fair Park Arena (Birmingham, Alabama)	Texas Southern[50]
Sun Belt Conference	Western Kentucky (East) Louisiana–Lafayette (West)	James Moore, New Mexico State[51]	2003 Sun Belt Men's Basketball Tournament	E. A. Diddle Arena (Bowling Green, Kentucky)	Western Kentucky[52]
West Coast Conference	Gonzaga	Blake Stepp, Gonzaga [53]	2003 West Coast Conference Men's Basketball Tournament	Jenny Craig Pavilion (San Diego, California)	San Diego [54]
Western Athletic Conference	Fresno State	Quinton Ross, Southern Methodist[55]	2003 WAC Men's Basketball Tournament	Reynolds Center (Tulsa, Oklahoma)	Tulsa[55]

Statistical leaders

Points Per Game				Rebounds Per Game				Assists Per Game				Steals Per Game
Player	School	PPG		Player	School	RPG		Player	School	APG		Player	School	SPG
Ruben Douglas	New Mexico	28.0		Brandon Hunter	Ohio	12.6		Martell Bailey	Illinois-Chicago	8.1		Alexis McMillan	Stetson	4.0
Henry Domercant	E. Illinois	27.9		Amien Hicks	Morris Brown	12.4		Marques Green	St. Bonaventure	8.0		Zakee Wadood	E. Tennessee St.	3.2
Mike Helms	Oakland	26.9		Adam Sonn	Belmont	12.1		T. J. Ford	Texas	7.7		Jay Heard	Jacksonville St.	3.2
Michael Watson	UMKC	25.5		Chris Kaman	C. Michigan	12.0		Elliott Prasse-Freeman	Harvard	7.7		Eric Bush	UAB	3.1
Troy Bell	Boston College	25.2		David West	Xavier	11.8		Antawn Dobie	LIU	7.4		Marcus Hatten	St. John's	2.9

Blocked Shots Per Game				Field Goal Percentage				Three-Point FG Percentage				Free Throw Percentage
Player	School	BPG		Player	School	FG%		Player	School	3FG%		Player	School	FT%
Emeka Okafor	UConn	4.7		Adam Mark	Belmont	67.0		Jeff Schiffner	Penn	49.3		Steve Drabyn	Belmont	95.1
Nick Billings	Binghamton	4.3		Rickey White	Maine	66.2		Kyle Korver	Creighton	48.0		Matt Logie	Lehigh	94.8
Justin Rowe	Maine	4.2		Matt Nelson	Colorado St.	64.3		Terrence Woods	Florida A&M	45.7		Hollis Price	Oklahoma	92.9
Deng Gai	Fairfield	3.8		Armond Williams	Illinois-Chicago	63.9		Chez Marks	Morehead St.	45.6		Brian Dux	Canisius	92.0
Robert Battle	Drexel	3.7		Michael Harris	Rice	62.3		Tyson Dorsey	Samford	45.5		J. J. Redick	Duke	91.9

Postseason tournaments

NCAA Tournament

Final Four – Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

	National Semifinals					National Championship Game
	E3	Syracuse	95
	S1	Texas	84
						E3	Syracuse	81
						W2	Kansas	78
	M3	Marquette	61
	W2	Kansas	94

National Invitation Tournament

Semifinals & Finals

	Semifinals					Finals
		Georgetown	88
		Minnesota	74
							Georgetown	67
							St. John's	70
		Texas Tech	63
		St. John's	64

• Third Place – Texas Tech 71, Minnesota 61

Award winners

Consensus All-American teams

Consensus First Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
David West	F	Senior	Xavier
T.J. Ford	G	Sophomore	Texas
Josh Howard	F/G	Senior	Wake Forest
Nick Collison	F	Senior	Kansas
Dwyane Wade	G	Junior	Marquette

Consensus Second Team

Player	Position	Class	Team
Hollis Price	G	Senior	Oklahoma
Carmelo Anthony	F/G	Freshman	Syracuse
Kyle Korver	F	Senior	Creighton
Troy Bell	G	Senior	Boston College
Jason Gardner	G	Senior	Arizona

Major player of the year awards

• Wooden Award: T. J. Ford, Texas
• Naismith Award: T. J. Ford, Texas
• Associated Press Player of the Year: David West, Xavier
• NABC Player of the Year: Nick Collison, Kansas
• Oscar Robertson Trophy (USBWA): David West, Xavier
• Adolph Rupp Trophy: David West, Xavier
• Sporting News Player of the Year: T. J. Ford, Texas

Major freshman of the year awards

• USBWA Freshman of the Year: Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse
• Sporting News Freshman of the Year: Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse

Major coach of the year awards

• Associated Press Coach of the Year: Tubby Smith, Kentucky
• Henry Iba Award (USBWA): Tubby Smith, Kentucky
• NABC Coach of the Year: Tubby Smith, Kentucky
• Naismith College Coach of the Year: Tubby Smith, Kentucky
• CBS/Chevrolet Coach of the Year: Tubby Smith, Kentucky
• Sporting News Coach of the Year: Tubby Smith, Kentucky

Other major awards

• Pete Newell Big Man Award (Best big man): David West, Xavier
• NABC Defensive Player of the Year: Emeka Okafor, Connecticut
• Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award (Best player under 6'0): Jason Gardner, Arizona
• Lowe's Senior CLASS Award (top senior): David West, Xavier
• Robert V. Geasey Trophy (Top player in Philadelphia Big 5): Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
• NIT/Haggerty Award (Top player in NYC): Luis Flores, Manhattan

Coaching changes

A number of teams changed coaches throughout the season and after the season ended.^[56]

Team	Former Coach	Interim Coach	New Coach	Reason
Alcorn State	Davey Whitney		Samuel West
Arkansas-Little Rock	Porter Moser		Steve Shields
Cal State Fullerton	Donny Daniels		Bob Burton
Campbell	Billy Lee		Robbie Laing
Chicago State	Bo Ellis		Kevin Jones
Clemson	Larry Shyatt		Oliver Purnell
Cleveland State	Rollie Massimino		Mike Garland
Columbia	Armond Hill		Joe Jones
Dayton	Oliver Purnell		Brian Gregory
Drake	Kurt Kanaskie		Tom Davis
East Tennessee State	Ed DeChellis		Murry Bartow
Elon	Mark Simons		Ernie Nestor
Fordham	Bob Hill		Dereck Whittenburg
Georgia	Jim Harrick		Dennis Felton
Georgia State	Lefty Driesell		Michael Perry
High Point	Jerry Steele		Bart Lundy
Illinois	Bill Self		Bruce Weber
Illinois State	Tom Richardson		Porter Moser
Iowa State	Larry Eustachy		Wayne Morgan	Eustachy quit following the release of pictures of him at a party near the campus of the University of Missouri.[57]
Jackson State	Andy Stoglin		Tevester Anderson
Kansas	Roy Williams		Bill Self	After turning down the North Carolina job previously, Williams accepted the position at his alma mater.
Marshall	Greg White		Ron Jirsa
Mount St. Mary's	Jim Phelan		Milan Brown	Phelan retired after 49 years and 830 victories.
Murray State	Tevester Anderson		Mick Cronin
North Carolina	Matt Doherty		Roy Williams	Doherty resigned after rumors of player unrest.[58] UNC alum Williams is hired away from Kansas.
North Carolina A&T	Curtis Hunter		Jerry Eaves
Penn State	Jerry Dunn		Ed DeChellis
Pittsburgh	Ben Howland		Jamie Dixon
St. Bonaventure	Jan van Breda Kolff		Anthony Solomon
South Carolina State	Cy Alexander		Ben Betts
South Florida	Seth Greenberg		Robert McCullum
Southern	Ben Jobe		Michael Grant
Southern Illinois	Bruce Weber		Matt Painter
Tennessee State	Nolan Richardson III	Hosea Lewis	Cy Alexander	Richardson III was suspended and ultimately resigned after allegedly threatening an assistant coach with a gun.[59]
UCLA	Steve Lavin		Ben Howland	Lavin was fired following a 10–19 season.
Virginia Tech	Ricky Stokes		Seth Greenberg
Wagner	Dereck Whittenburg		Mike Deane
Washington State	Paul Graham		Dick Bennett
Western Illinois	Jim Kerwin		Derek Thomas
Western Kentucky	Dennis Felton		Darrin Horn
Western Michigan	Robert McCullum		Steve Hawkins
William & Mary	Rick Boyages		Tony Shaver
Wright State	Ed Schilling		Paul Biancardi

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