Horizon League 2004-05 Season Recap
What a year for the Horizon League.
For the second time in three years, a team from the Horizon League reached the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament, also known as the Sweet 16.
Two years ago, the Butler Bulldogs reached the round of 16 before falling to Oklahoma. This year, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers surprised everyone but themselves as they reached the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history. It was UWM’s first victory in the NCAA tournament in school history as well.
UWM thoroughly dominated their victories over Alabama and Boston College, teams that were said to be too big and too strong for the smaller Panthers. But UWM coach Bruce Pearl, his staff and his players worked magic by their effective press to hamper the Crimson Tide and the Eagles.
“The fact that the NCAA provides an opportunity to compete for championships is amazing,” former UWM coach Bruce Pearl said after his team’s victory over Boston College. “My time at the NCAA tournament is something I treasure. We are honored to be a part of it, grateful and very, very blessed.
“We may have given away some size but I don’t think we could have played any harder than we did and we feel fortunate to be advancing onto the Sweet 16.”
The Panthers’ reward for reaching the Sweet 16 was a showdown with the University of Illinois Fighting Illini, the number one seed for the tournament in practically their backyard in Chicago. The Panthers hung tight with the nation’s number one team at the time, but, in the end, the Illini, who had a crowd of about 95 percent Illini orange packed into the Allstate Arena, proved to be too much as the Panthers eventually lost.
With all of the success by Pearl and his Panthers, the University of Tennessee came knocking on the door at UWM, wanting Pearl for their head coaching vacancy.
Just four days after the departure from the NCAA tournament, Pearl packed his bags for greener pastures to Knoxville, Tenn. The administration tried everything they could to keep Pearl, but it was not enough. Pearl, with incentives, will make an estimated $1.3 million next season, as opposed to the $300,000 he was scheduled to make next season at UWM.
Pearl also took three of his assistants to Tennessee, Tony Jones, Jason Shay and Ken Johnson, leaving a huge hole in a program that was at its highest point in the 109-year history of the program.
But with the resurgence of the UWM program, the names of the people interested in the job were quite substantial. UWM athletic director Bud Haidet had his heart set right from the beginning that Rob Jeter, the associate head coach at Wisconsin under Bo Ryan, was the man for the job.
On April 12, it was officially announced that Jeter was going to be UWM’s 20th coach in school history and third since the start of the 1999-2000 season. At his press conference, Jeter vowed that the Panthers that captured the hearts of Wisconsin basketball fans and even fans across the country were still going to be the same Panthers.
“We’ll dive after loose balls. We’ll take charges. We’ll take good shots. We’ll press. We’ll get after teams,” Jeter said at his press conference. “You’ll see our point guard blast the ball up the court and all the things people appreciate, but fundamentally, we are going to be sound. I think people appreciate the little things and the fundamentals of the game and the tenacity with which our guys play the game.”
Surprises of 2004-05
For the last half-decade, the Detroit Titans have always been considered the “sleeper” team of the Horizon League. Coupled with a hard-nosed defense and a wide-array of highly-talented transfers joining the team in mid-season, the Titans came within one point of a trip to the NCAA tournament.
Disappointment of 2004-05
The reigning 2003-04 Horizon League tournament champions, the University of Illinois-Chicago Flames, struggled all year long. After narrowly upsetting Georgia Tech in the first game of the season, the Flames were never the same, despite the fact that they had their leading rebounder (Armond Williams) and leading scorer (Cedrick Banks) back.
Recapping the Horizon League tournament
The opening round of the tournament saw the No. 4, No. 5 and No. 6 seeds each win their first round game. The same happened in the second round, but Loyola and UIC played what was, outside of the league title game, the game of the tournament. The Ramblers, behind Blake Schilb’s 39 points, squeaked out an 87-81 victory over the Flames in the quarterfinals.
The semifinals saw an upset. The Titans simply outworked the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Phoenix en route to a 61-55 victory, advancing to the league championship game. And, it was no surprise that UW-Milwaukee, hosting their third straight league tournament, easily defeated Loyola, 94-76, to advance to the league title game for a third straight season.
But the championship game brought out the best of both teams. With both teams struggling from the free throw line, a clutch performance by Adrian Tigert at the free throw line proved to be the difference. Tigert’s free throw with under five seconds to go, gave UWM a 59-58 lead. Detroit tried a desperation shot at the buzzer, but it was partially blocked, sending the sell-out crowd at the U.S. Cellular Arena into a frenzy. UWM was on their way to a second NCAA tournament appearance in three years.
The postseason
Unlike in past seasons, the Horizon League only had one postseason representative – the UWM Panthers in the NCAA tournament. There was no NIT for the league this year. But, the Panthers sure made notice that the Horizon League is for real. For the second time in three years, a league team pulled off two upsets to reach the Sweet 16.
Postseason awards
Player of the year: Joah Tucker, UWM
Coach of the year: Bruce Pearl, UWM
Newcomer of the year: Brandon Cotton, Detroit
Defensive player of the year: Brandon Cotton, Detroit
All-league team
Joah Tucker, UWM
Ed McCants, UWM
Cedrick Banks, UIC
Blake Schilb, Loyola
Brandon Cotton, Detroit
UW-Milwaukee Panthers (26-6, 14-2)
The post-Bruce Pearl era will be an interesting one out of the gate. As long as Joah Tucker, who is contemplating turning pro, stays, the Panthers will be fine as they return four of five starters from this past season.
Team MVP: Joah Tucker (16.2 points per game)
Top scorer: Ed McCants (17.4 ppg)
Top rebounder: Adrian Tigert (6.7 rpg)
Assist leader: Chris Hill (3.2 apg)
Starters leaving
McCants
Starters returning
Tucker
Boo Davis
Tigert
Hill
UW-Green Bay Phoenix (17-11, 10-6)
What looked to be a promising season at the start ended the same way the previous season did – one game into the Horizon League tournament. Not even a bye into the semifinal helped. But with two players who averaged at least 10 points per game last season coming back, the Phoenix will remain as leading candidates for the championship.
Team MVP: Javier Mendiburu (11.5 points, 7.1 assists per game)
Top scorer: Benito Flores (13.4 ppg)
Top rebounder: Flores (6.5 rpg)
Assist leader: Mendiburu (7.1 apg)
Starters leaving
Matt Rohde
Brandon Morris
Mendiburu
Starters returning
Flores
Ryan Evanochko
Josh Lawrence
Detroit Titans (14-16, 9-7)
The Titans surprised quite a few people as they reached the league championship game, then lost the game by just a single point. But with virtually all of their core players coming back for next season, it would not be far-fetched to think of Detroit as one of the leading contenders for next year’s championship.
Team MVP: Brandon Cotton (18.8 points per game)
Top scorer: Cotton (18.8 ppg)
Top rebounder: Torvoris Baker (5.8 rpg)
Assist leader: James Thues (2.6 apg)
Starters leaving
Thues
Starters returning
Cotton
Ryvon Coville
Baker
Illinois-Chicago Flames (15-14, 8-8)
A little bit of everything went on for the Flames this past season. One player was granted an extra year of eligibility, while another was not; the starting point guard leaves the team during the season and the Flames lose a regular season home game to a Division II program. Point guard Martell Bailey was not granted an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA as a Prop 48 student-athlete, but Armond Williams was. Going into next year, the luck does not look like it will change all that much, now that Williams and Cedrick Banks will be gone.
Team MVP: Banks (18.7 points per game)
Top scorer: Banks (18.7 ppg)
Top rebounder: Williams (6.7 rpg)
Assist leader: Banks (2.5 apg)
Starters leaving
Williams
Banks
Starters returning
Elliott Poole
Rocky Collum
Luther Boyd
Bowen
Wright State Raiders (15-15, 8-8)
A strong finish carried the Raiders into contention to make some noise in the league tournament. But, yet again, the Raiders faltered in the opening round of the tournament. And, next year may get even tougher as only one senior will be on the roster.
Team MVP: DaShaun Wood (15.2 points, 3.7 assists per game)
Top scorer: Wood (15.2 ppg)
Top rebounder: Zach Williams (6.0 rpg)
Assist leader: Wood (3.7 apg)
Starters returning
Williams
Starters leaving
Wood
Zakee Boyd
Drew Burleson
Loyola Ramblers (13-17, 8-8)
The Ramblers have every reason to enter the 2005-’06 season with confidence. A run into the Horizon League tournament semifinals with a youthful squad makes the Ramblers a contender next year, especially with Blake Schilb leading the way.
Team MVP: Schilb (17.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists per game)
Top scorer: Schilb (17.9 ppg)
Top rebounder: Schilb (5.5 rpg)
Assist leader: Schilb (4.0 rpg)
Starters leaving
DaJuan Gouard
Tyrelle Blair (transferred to Boston College)
Starters returning
Schilb
Majak Kou
Butler Bulldogs (13-15 overall, 7-9 Horizon League)
The Bulldogs had their 11-year streak of a winning season snapped with their loss in the first round of the Horizon League tournament. Since the departure of their seniors that led them to the Sweet 16, the Bulldogs have struggled to be the dominant team of the league, but that time very well may be returning sooner than later.
Team MVP: Brandon Polk (team-high 13.6 points per game)
Top scorer: Polk (13.6 ppg)
Top rebounder: Polk (4.6 rpg)
Assist leader: Avery Sheets (4.0 apg)
Starters leaving
None
Starters returning
Polk
Sheets
Bruce Horan
Cleveland State Vikings (9-17, 6-10)
The league’s worst team last season was probably the most-improved this year. After getting only four victories all of the 2003-04 season, Mike Garland has got this program going in the right direction. Another solid recruiting class for 2005-06 will make the Vikings a team to not take lightly anymore.
Team MVP: Omari Westley (17.1 points and 8.3 rebounds per game)
Top scorer: Westley (17.1 ppg)
Top rebounder: Westley (8.3 rpg)
Assist leader: Walt Chavis (4.2 apg)
Starters leaving
Westley (graduation)
Modibo Niakate (graduation)
Chavis (graduation)
Starters returning
Raheem Moss
Patrick Tatham
Steve Gansey
Youngstown State Penguins (5-23, 2-14)
Well, what looked to happen at the beginning of the season, did. The Penguins fired head coach John Robic and brought in Jerry Slocum, who was previously at Division II Gannon University. Slocum brings in 30 years of coaching experience and a knack for winning. The Penguins need it: Robic only had one winning season during his tenure.
Team MVP: Quin Humphrey (14.4 points per game)
Top scorer: Humphrey (14.4 ppg)
Top rebounder: Brian Radakovich (5.5 rpg)
Assist leader: Jon Mends (3.6 apg)
Starters leaving
Khari McQueen
Radakovich
Starters returning
Humphrey
Mends
