2002–03 Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team

The 2002–03 Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team represented the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee during the 2002–03 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Panthers, led by 2nd-year head coach Bruce Pearl, played their home games at the U.S. Cellular Arena and Klotsche Center and were members of the Horizon League. They finished the season 24–8, 13–3 in Horizon League play to finish in second place. They were champions of the Horizon League tournament to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where they received a No. 12 seed in the Midwest region. Their season ended after losing a one-point game to No. 5 seed Notre Dame in the opening round.^[1]

2002–03 Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball
Horizon League tournament champions
NCAA tournament
Conference	Horizon League
Record	24–8 (13–3 Horizon)
Head coach	Bruce Pearl (2nd season)
Home arena	U.S. Cellular Arena Klotsche Center
Seasons ← 2001–02 2003–04 →

2002–03 Horizon League men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Butler	14	–	2		.875			27	–	6		.818
Milwaukee †	13	–	3		.813			24	–	8		.750
Illinois-Chicago	12	–	4		.750			21	–	9		.700
Loyola Chicago	9	–	7		.563			15	–	16		.484
Detroit Mercy	9	–	7		.563			18	–	12		.600
Green Bay	4	–	12		.250			10	–	20		.333
Youngstown State	4	–	12		.250			9	–	20		.310
Wright State	4	–	12		.250			10	–	18		.357
Cleveland State	3	–	13		.188			8	–	22		.267
† 2003 Horizon League Tournament winner

Roster

2002–03 Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 2 Chris Hill 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Whitney Young Chicago, Illinois G 4 Mark Pancratz 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Schaumburg Schaumburg, Illinois F 15 Dylan Page 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Jr Amherst Amherst, Wisconsin F 21 Jason McCoy 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Rutgers Houston, Texas G 22 Jose Winston 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr   Milwaukee, Wisconsin F 23 James Wright 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Vincent Milwaukee, Wisconsin G 24 Boo Davis 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Olney CC Chicago, Illinois G 30 Clay Tucker 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Sr Perry Lima, Ohio F 42 Rob Sanders 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) So Toledo Toledo, Ohio F 44 Adrian Tigert 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Fr West Oshkosh, Wisconsin C 50 Derrick Ford 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Fr Olney CC Toledo, Ohio	Head coach Bruce Pearl Assistant coach(es) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster

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Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Regular season
Nov 23, 2002*		at Wisconsin	L 72–83	0–1	Kohl Center  Madison, Wisconsin
Mar 1, 2003		at Butler	L 74–76	22–7 (13–3)	Hinkle Fieldhouse  Indianapolis, Indiana
Horizon League Tournament
Mar 8, 2003*		vs. Illinois-Chicago Semifinals	W 75–73	23–7	U.S. Cellular Arena  Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Mar 11, 2003*		Butler Championship game	W 69–52	24–7	U.S. Cellular Arena  Milwaukee, Wisconsin
NCAA Tournament
Mar 20, 2003*	(12 MW)	vs. (5 MW) No. 22 Notre Dame First round	L 69–70	24–8	RCA Dome  Indianapolis, Indiana
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West.

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Rankings

Main article: 2002–03 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

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Awards and honors

• Bruce Pearl – Horizon League Coach of the Year

References

1. "Panthers miss layup at buzzer, ND moves on". ESPN. March 21, 2003. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
2. "2002-03 Men's Basketball Roster". Milwaukee Panthers. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
3. "2002-03 Men's Basketball Schedule". Milwaukee Panthers. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
4. ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 1119–1120. ISBN 0-345-51392-4.

• 2002-03 Milwaukee Panthers Schedule and Results