2003–04 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team

The 2003–04 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball team represented Georgetown University in the 2003–04 NCAA Division I college basketball season. The Hoyas were coached by Craig Esherick and played their home games at the MCI Center in Washington, DC. The Hoyas were members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 13-15, 4-12 in Big East play. They lost to Boston College in the first round of the 2004 Big East men's basketball tournament and had no further postseason play. It was the first time since the 1973-74 season that Georgetown did not receive an invitation to either the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament or the National Invitation Tournament.

2003–04 Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball
ConferenceBig East
Record13-15 (4-12 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Captains
  • Courtland Freeman (3rd year)
  • Gerald Riley (1st year)
Home arenaMCI Center
Seasons
2003–04 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 9 Pittsburgh 13 3   .813 31 5   .861
No. 7 Connecticut 12 4   .750 33 6   .846
No. 21 Providence 11 5   .688 20 9   .690
No. 20 Syracuse 11 5   .688 23 8   .742
No. 25 Boston College 10 6   .625 24 10   .706
Seton Hall 10 6   .625 21 12   .636
Notre Dame 9 7   .563 19 13   .594
Virginia Tech 7 9   .438 15 14   .517
Rutgers 7 9   .438 20 13   .606
West Virginia 7 9   .438 17 14   .548
Villanova 6 10   .375 18 17   .514
Georgetown 4 12   .250 13 15   .464
Miami (FL)* 4 12   .250 14 16   .467
St. John's* 1 15   .063 6 21   .222
2004 Big East tournament winner
As of April 5, 2004[1]
Rankings from AP Poll
*Did not qualify for 2004 Big East tournament

Season Recap

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Senior forward and team co-captain Gerald Riley started all 28 games, completing his string of starting all 125 games of his collegiate career. With power forward Mike Sweetney having left the team over the offseason, choosing to forgo his senior year to enter the National Basketball Association draft, Riley became the team's offensive centerpiece, and he averaged 33 minutes a game for the year. He put in a strong performance early in the season as the team won its first ten games.[2] Sophomore forward Brandon Bowman, meanwhile, also started all 28 games – as he would all 127 games of his collegiate career – and averaged 34 minutes per game. He scored in double figures 24 times and led the team in scoring 12 times. He also led the team in rebounding 20 times.[3]

Sophomore guard Ashanti Cook became a starter this season, starting all 28 games, as he would every game for the rest of his collegiate career. He scored a season-high 18 points against Connecticut and his 106 assists for the year were twice as many as anyone else on the team. He shot 34.4 percent from the field and only 31.9 percent from three-point range, but averaged 9.2 points per game.[4] Junior forward Darrel Owens started the season strong, averaging in double figures in early games and scoring 20 points against Boston College. He also had ten or more rebounds in two games.[5]

The team opened the season 10-0, including a victory over Rutgers in the Big East opener, but it sorely missed the departed Sweetney and won only three more games as virtually the entire team slumped. Riley excelled in the two victories over Miami, scoring 35 points at Miami and then 37 points against the Hurricanes a week later at the MCI Center, the most points scored by a Georgetown forward in a single game since 1965. In the two Miami games combined, he shot 25-for-32 (78.1%) from the field and a perfect 16-for-16 from the free-throw line. Otherwise, however, his numbers went into decline as the team's fortunes fell.[2] Owens also saw his performance drop; during Georgetown's season-ending nine-game losing streak, he never scored in double figures and averaged only 4.5 points per game.[5] Among Hoya players, only Bowman did not slump. He led the team in rebounds in 15 of the last 17 games of the year. Though he also struggled at the onset of the nine-game losing streak, he shot 46 percent from the field during the final four games of the season compared to 31 percent for the rest of the team. The team averaged 52 points a game during its last four games, and Bowman was responsible for a third of them.[3]

Losing 14 of the final 17 games of the regular season, the team finished the regular season at 13-14 overall and 4-12 in the Big East – the worst conference record it ever had in the 34-season history of the original Big East Conference – and tied for 12th place. It went into the 2004 Big East tournament with an eight-game losing streak and lost in the first round to Boston College. The tournament loss extended the team's losing streak to nine games, tying the school record for the most games lost in a row set by the hapless 3-23 team of 1971-72.[3]

The team's 13-15 final record was the first losing record for a Georgetown team since the 1998-99 team went 15-16 and only the second since the 1972-73 team posted a 12-14 record. With no postseason play, Georgetown missed the NCAA tournament for the third year in a row and for the sixth time in seven years. Although the 2001-02 team had no postseason play after Esherick declined an invitation to the 2002 National Invitation Tournament (NIT), the 2003-04 team was the first Georgetown squad to receive no invitation to either the NCAA tournament or the NIT since 1973-74.

Esherick fired

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Craig Esherick – a former Georgetown player who had served as a Hoyas assistant coach for 17½ seasons before succeeding John Thompson, Jr., as head coach in January 1999 – had posted a 103-74 (.582) record during his 5½ seasons as head coach.[6] At the end of the 2002-2003 season, Georgetown had extended his contract through 2009.[7] He indicated to the press late in the 2003-2004 season that his position as head coach was secure,[7] that he had a good recruiting class joining the team for the 2004-2005 season[7] – it included future stars Jeff Green, Roy Hibbert, and Jonathan Wallace[6] – and that they should "stay tuned,"[7] and Georgetown president John DeGioia gave him a public show of support around the same time.[7] On March 5, 2004, Esherick said, "I ain't going anywhere – I may be here for another 30 years."[7]

However, after only one NCAA Tournament appearance during Esherick′s tenure, three consecutive seasons without an NCAA Tournament appearance, and a sub-.500 performance in 2003-04 that ended with the record-tying losing streak, DeGioia fired Esherick on March 16, 2004, just six days after the end of the season.[6] Assistant coaches Mike Riley, Jaren Jackson, and Chuck Driesell also left the team at the end of the season, Riley after 22 seasons as an assistant coach at Georgetown and the other two after a single season of coaching the Hoyas.[8]

Roster

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Source[9]

# Name Height Weight (lbs.) Position Class Hometown Previous Team(s)
0 Ashanti Cook 6'2" 175 G Jr. Inglewood, CA, U.S. Westchester HS
1 Brandon Bowman 6'8¾" 213 F Jr. Santa Monica, CA, U.S. Westchester HS
2 Courtland Freeman 6'9" 227 F/|C Sr. Myrtle Beach, SC, U.S. Socastee HS
3 Omari Faulkner 6'6" 205 F Sr. Memphis, TN, U.S. Hamilton HS
4 Kenny Izzo 6'8" 200 F/C So. Chicago, IL, U.S. Fenwick HS
5 Ray Reed 6'0¾" 163 G So. Inglewood, CA, U.S. Inglewood HS
10 RaMell Ross 6'5¾" 201 G/|F Sr. Fairfax, VA, U.S. Lake Braddock Secondary
14 Matt Causey 6'11½" 171 G So. Gainesville, GA, U.S. Berkmar HS
20 Darrell Owens 6'6" 206 F/G Sr. Napoleonville, LA, U.S. Assumption HS
32 Gerald Riley 6'6" 217 G Sr. Milledgeville, GA, U.S. Baldwin HS
40 Ryan Beal 6'5" 194 G Jr. Coral Gables, FL, U.S. Ransom Everglades School
44 Amadou Kilkenny-Diaw 6'8" 220 F/C Jr. Washington, DC, U.S. St. Albans School
52 Sead Dizdarevic 6'8" 230 F So. Serbia and Montenegro North Highland HS

Rankings

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The team was not ranked in the Top 25 in either the AP Poll or the Coaches' Poll at any time and was never among other teams receiving votes in either poll.[10][11]

2003–04 Schedule and results

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Sources[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69]

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Preseason
Sat., Nov. 1, 2003*
2:00pm[70]
Israeli All-Stars W 101-64  exhibition
McDonough Gymnasium (N/A)
Washington, DC
Regular season
Fri., Nov. 21, 2003*
7:30 p.m.
Grambling State W 83-36  1–0
MCI Center (5,437)
Washington, DC
Sun., Nov. 23, 2003*
3:00pm
at Penn State W 79-78  2–0
Bryce Jordan Center (8,874)
University Park, PA
Tue., Nov. 25, 2003*
7:30pm
Coastal Carolina W 81-68  3–0
MCI Center (4,189)
Washington, DC
Sat., Nov. 29, 2003*
1:00pm
Delaware State W 63-54  4–0
MCI Center (5,003)
Washington, DC
Wed., Dec. 3, 2003*
7:30pm
Norfolk State W 76-53  5–0
MCI Center (4,314)
Washington, DC
Sat., Dec. 6, 2003*
8:00pm
Davidson W 71–53  6–0
MCI Center (5,657)
Washington, DC
Sat., Dec. 13, 2003*
12:00 noon
Elon W 91-70  7–0
MCI Center (5,683)
Washington, DC
Sat., Dec. 20, 2003*
1:00pm
Howard W 89–58  8–0
MCI Center (4,412)
Washington, DC
Mon., Dec. 22, 2003*
7:00pm
at The Citadel W 85–62  9–0
McAlister Field House (2,431)
Charleston, SC
Sat., Jan. 3, 2004
2:00pm
Rutgers W 63-57  10–0 (1–0)
MCI Center (8,194)
Washington, DC
Tue., Jan. 6, 2004
7:30pm
Boston College L 64–72  10–1 (1–1)
MCI Center (7,735)
Washington, DC
Sat., Jan. 10, 2004
12:00 noon
at West Virginia L 58–62  10–2 (1–2)
WVU Coliseum (6,071)
Morgantown, WV
Wed., Jan. 14, 2004
7:30pm
at No. 1 Connecticut
Rivalry
L 70–94  10–3 (1–3)
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167)
Storrs, CT
Tue., Jan. 20, 2004
7:30pm
St. John's W 71–69  11–3 (2–3)
MCI Center (7,203)
Washington, DC
Sat., Jan. 24, 2004*
2:00pm
No. 1 Duke L 66–85  11–4
MCI Center (20,193)
Washington, DC
Mon., Jan. 26, 2004
7:30pm
at Providence L 50–65  11–5 (2–4)
Dunkin Donuts Center (10,397)
Providence, RI
Sat., Jan. 31, 2004
7:30pm
at Miami W 87–80 OT 12-5 (3–4)
Convocation Center (5,193)
Coral Gables, FL
Thu., Feb. 5, 2004
7:30pm
Villanova L 60–75  12–6 (3–5)
MCI Center (7,738)
Washington, DC
Sat., Feb. 7, 2004
7:00pm
Miami W 80–64  13–6 (4–5)
MCI Center (10,581)
Washington, DC
Wed., Feb. 11, 2004
7:00pm
at Virginia Tech L 65–80  13–7 (4–6)
Cassell Coliseum (6,746)
Blacksburg, VA
Sat., Feb. 14, 2004*
2:00pm
at Temple L 53–59  13–8
Liacouras Center (6,795)
Philadelphia, PA
Wed., Feb. 18, 2004
7:30pm
at St. John's L 58–65  13–9 (4–7)
Madison Square Garden (6,192)
New York, NY
Sat., Feb. 21, 2004
12:00 noon
Syracuse L 54–57  13–10 (4–8)
MCI Center (15,389)
Washington, DC
Tue., Feb. 24, 2004
7:30pm
No. 3 Pittsburgh L 58–68  13–11 (4–9)
MCI Center (11,876)
Washington, DC
Sat., Feb. 28, 2004
7:00pm
at Seton Hall L 48–75  13–12 (4–10)
Continental Airlines Arena (11,302)
East Rutherford, NJ
Thu., Mar. 4, 2004
7:00pm
at Notre Dame L 48–61  13–13 (4–11)
Edmund P. Joyce Center (11,418)
Notre Dame, IN
Sat., Mar. 6, 2004
12:00 noon
Virginia Tech L 55–60  13–14 (4–12)
MCI Center (11,286)
Washington, DC
Big East tournament
Wed., Mar. 10, 2004
2:00pm
(12) vs. (5) Boston College
First Round
L 57–68  13–15
Madison Square Garden (19,173)
New York, NY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

References

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  1. ^ " sports-reference.com. Retrieved 11-16-2013.
  2. ^ a b "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 39. Gerald Riley". Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2014.
  3. ^ a b c "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 27. Brandon Bowman". Archived from the original on November 30, 2012. Retrieved April 26, 2014.
  4. ^ "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 51. Ashanti Cook". Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2014.
  5. ^ a b "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: The Top 100: 71. Darrel Owens". Archived from the original on November 23, 2014. Retrieved April 26, 2014.
  6. ^ a b c "Then Georgetown Basketball History Project: Head Coaches". Archived from the original on May 27, 2017. Retrieved November 23, 2013.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Esherick Is Out at Georgetown". Los Angeles Times. March 17, 2004.
  8. ^ Then Georgetown Basketball History Project: Assistant Coaches
  9. ^ "GUHOYAS.COM 2004-2005 Roster - Official Athletic Site Official Athletic Site - Men's Basketball". Archived from the original on August 13, 2014. Retrieved November 16, 2013.
  10. ^ sports-reference.com 2003-04 Big East Conference Season Summary
  11. ^ 2004 NCAA Men's Basketball Rankings - USA Today Coaches Poll
  12. ^ 2012-2013 Georgetown Men's Basketball Media Guide, p. 66.
  13. ^ "The Georgetown Basketball History Project: 2000s Schedules". Archived from the original on November 12, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2013.
  14. ^ "guhoyas.com 2003-04 Men's Basketball Schedule". Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2013.
  15. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Grambling State at Georgetown, November 21, 2003
  16. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Grambling State at Georgetown, November 21, 2003
  17. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Penn State, November 23, 2003
  18. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Penn State, November 23, 2003
  19. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Coastal Carolina at Georgetown, November 25, 2003
  20. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Coastal Carolina at Georgetown, November 25, 2003
  21. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Delaware State at Georgetown, November 29, 2003
  22. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Delaware State at Georgetown, November 29, 2003
  23. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Norfolk State at Georgetown, December 3, 2003
  24. ^ sports.yahoo.com Box Score: Norfolk State at Georgetown, December 3, 2003
  25. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Davidson at Georgetown, December 6, 2003
  26. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Davidson at Georgetown, December 6, 2003
  27. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Elon at Georgetown, December 13, 2003
  28. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Elon at Georgetown, December 13, 2003
  29. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Howard at Georgetown, December 20, 2003
  30. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Howard at Georgetown, December 20, 2003
  31. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at The Citadel, December 22, 2003
  32. ^ sports.yahoo.com Box Score: Georgetown at The Citadel, December 22, 2003
  33. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Rutgers at Georgetown, January 3, 2004
  34. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Boston College at Georgetown, January 6, 2004
  35. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at West Virginia, January 10, 2004
  36. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at West Virginia, January 10, 2004
  37. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at West Virginia, January 10, 2004
  38. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Connecticut, January 14, 2004
  39. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Connecticut, January 14, 2004
  40. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: St. John's at Georgetown, January 20, 2004
  41. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: St. John's at Georgetown, January 20, 2004
  42. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Duke at Georgetown, January 24, 2004
  43. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Duke at Georgetown, January 24, 2004
  44. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Providence, January 26, 2004
  45. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Providence, January 26, 2004
  46. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Miami, January 31, 2004
  47. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Miami, January 31, 2004
  48. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Villanova at Georgetown, February 5,2004
  49. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Villanova at Georgetown, February 5, 2004
  50. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Miami at Georgetown, February 7,2004
  51. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Miami at Georgetown, February 7,2004
  52. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Virginia Tech, February 11,2004
  53. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Virginia Tech, February 11,2004
  54. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Temple, February 14,2004
  55. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Temple, February 14,2004
  56. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at St. John's, February 18,2004
  57. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at St. John's, February 18,2004
  58. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Syracuse at Georgetown, February 21,2004
  59. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Syracuse at Georgetown, February 21,2004
  60. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Pittsburgh at Georgetown, February 24,2004
  61. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Pittsburgh at Georgetown, February 24,2004
  62. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Seton Hall, February 28,2004
  63. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Seton Hall, February 28,2004
  64. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown at Notre Dame, March 4, 2004
  65. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown at Notre Dame, March 4,2004
  66. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Virginia Tech at Georgetown, March 6, 2004
  67. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Virginia Tech at Georgetown, March 6, 2004
  68. ^ espn.go.com Box Score: Georgetown vs. Boston College, March 10, 2004
  69. ^ basketball.realgm.com Box Score: Georgetown vs. Boston College, March 10, 2004
  70. ^ "guhoyas.com "Hoyas Host Israeli All Stars in Exhibition," October 28, 2003". Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved November 18, 2013.