Northwestern University Athletics
2003-04 Season in Review
7/16/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
April 1, 2004
Final Game Notes in PDF Format
Final NU Player Bios in PDF Format
Final Game Recaps in PDF Format
Final Statistics in PDF Format
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EVANSTON, Ill. - If you look at the results from last year to this year, you could make the argument that Northwestern is still making small steps. But the Wildcats are definitely making steps.
After going 12-17 overall in 2002-03, the 'Cats improved by two games in 2003-04 and finished 14-15. That was still not enough to earn NU the postseason berth that has been so elusive under four-year head coach Bill Carmody -- the 'Cats needed to finish .500 or better to be considered for an NIT bid -- but as the program chugs toward the 2004-05 campaign there seems to be a level of optimism unparalleled in the Carmody era.
The biggest indicator that Northwestern is heading in the right direction came within the Big Ten. The Wildcats finished the campaign with an 8-8 conference record (its best record since 1968) and tied for fifth place (its best standing since 1969). In the first round of the Big Ten Tournament, sixth-seeded NU garnered a school and tournament record with 22 steals in defeating Penn State, but the 'Cats fell to third-seeded Michigan State in the quarterfinal round (NU's second straight appearance in the quarters after a four-year absence). At the end of the season, Carmody's coaching job was rewarded when he was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year by a panel of media voters. It was the first time since the award began being presented in 1973 that a Northwestern mentor was honored.
The leaps in the four years since Carmody arrived as head coach have been quantum, with perhaps this fact being the most telling: when he got to Northwestern, the Wildcats were mired in a 15-game home losing streak against conference opponents. Since that streak was broken (late in Carmody's first season), NU is 16-11 in Big Ten home games. This season, only two Big Ten teams -- Michigan State and Michigan -- emerged from Welsh-Ryan with a victory, and the list of Northwestern's vanquished foes included the top two teams in the Big Ten regular-season standings (Illinois and Wisconsin, both by a double-digit margin).
Northwestern's success has not been limited to Welsh-Ryan Arena. Teams have rolled out the red carpet for the Wildcats in the past, but this season they found their guests to be less-than-hospitable. NU won at Iowa and Purdue, giving them two Big Ten road wins for the second time in three years, and gave several other teams all they could handle before falling in the end.
Any talk of Northwestern basketball in 2003-04 started with senior Jitim Young. The guard was the unquestioned leader of this team, putting together arguably the best season by a Wildcat player in the Carmody era and capping his superb career by earning first-team All-Big Ten recognition from both the conference coaches and a panel of media voters. Young finished his career on 11 top-10 lists at the school, and is the program's all-time leader in games started (all 117 in his career) as well as its sixth-leading scorer (1,521 points).
However, the biggest reason for optimism in the future? Young's supporting cast, of which all but one player enters the 2004-05 season still with two seasons of eligibility. Vedran Vukusic came back from two years of shoulder troubles and ended up earning honorable mention All-Big Ten; he averaged 14.3 points per game and finished the campaign among the conference leaders in 10 different categories. T.J. Parker dished out 115 assists, the fifth-best total for a single season at NU, and also provided some dramatic moments led by his game-winning shot vs. Arizona State in December. Mohamed Hachad has now started 42 straight games and had 11 double-figure scoring games in 2003-04; he has set the table for a tremendous second half to his college career. Junior Davor Duvancic got the first major minutes of his career and made them count, coming up large in some of NU's biggest wins this season. Evan Seacat was noticeably improved from his freshman season, and turned into a nice outside threat before his season was derailed in mid-February against Penn State.
Add in a couple of transfers who become eligible next year -- Tim Doyle from St. John's and Mike Thompson from Duke -- and suddenly you have a deep, experienced lineup that already has a finish in the upper half of the Big Ten standings under its belt. Heady times may indeed be ahead for Northwestern basketball as it closes down its first century (next season will be the 100th NU hoop season).
The 2003-04 Fun Fact
Northwestern set two Big Ten records this season -- the Wildcats' +5.12 turnover margin in conference play was a new standard, as was their 9.8 turnover-per-game average in conference play. In fact, NU became the first team in Big Ten history to boast a single-digit turnover average in conference games.
