2004–05 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team

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2004–05 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball
Fighting Illini logo.svg
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 2
APNo. 1
2004–05 record37-2 (15-1 Big Ten)
Head coachBruce Weber (2nd season)
Assistant coaches
MVPDee Brown
Luther Head
Deron Williams
CaptainDee Brown
Luther Head
Deron Williams
Home arenaAssembly Hall
Seasons
2004–05 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   PCT     W   L   PCT
No. 1 Illinois † 15 – 1   .938     37 – 2   .949
No. 15 Michigan State 13 – 3   .813     26 – 6   .813
No. 20 Wisconsin 11 – 5   .688     25 – 9   .735
Indiana 10 – 6   .625     15 – 14   .517
Minnesota 10 – 6   .625     21 – 11   .656
Ohio State 8 – 8   .500     20 – 12   .625
Iowa 7 – 9   .438     21 – 12   .636
Northwestern 6 – 10   .375     15 – 16   .484
Michigan 4 – 12   .250     13 – 18   .419
Purdue 3 – 13   .188     7 – 21   .250
Penn State 1 – 15   .063     7 – 23   .233
† 2005 Big Ten Tournament winner
As of March 15, 2005; Rankings from AP Poll[1]
"2004–05 Fighting Illini men's basketball team"

The 2004–05 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team, the 100th season of men's basketball at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, enjoyed one of the most successful seasons in recent college history. After starting the regular season with a record of 29–0 and winning the Big Ten Conference regular season title outright at 15–1, the Illini were Big Ten Tournament champions. They advanced in the NCAA Tournament to the national championship, but lost to North Carolina, 75–70, and ended the season at 37–2.

Nine years later in 2014, Sports Illustrated voted the 2005 Illinois team as the best ever not to win a national title.

Season[edit]

A promotional image from the 2004-05 season featuring Dee Brown, Luther Head, and Deron Williams.

Overview[edit]

Illinois celebrated its 100th season of varsity basketball in 2004-05. In his second season as head coach at Illinois, Bruce Weber’s Illini put together the most successful season in U of I history. The Illini tied the all-time NCAA record for victories in a season with 37 wins en route to its 37–2 record (since surpassed by 2011–12 Kentucky with a 38–2 record and 2014–15 Kentucky with a 38–1 record). Illinois made its fifth all-time NCAA Final Four appearance and first since 1989. The Illini defeated Louisville in the national semifinal to advance to the championship game for the first time in school history. Illinois finished as the national runner-up, falling by five points to North Carolina in the title game.

Above all else, the team was noted for its impeccable ball movement on offense, and led the nation in assists. A constant flow of passes allowed for open looks from the three-point line on every play. Led by a three-guard starting lineup, the team did not rely upon sheer size and height like many other teams in order to dominate, but rather skill and teamwork. Illinois relied upon three-point shooting for its offensive firepower. Illinois' effective offense was largely attributable to the team chemistry that had developed amongst the starting five, which had gone unchanged over the two previous seasons. Defensively, the team was one of the best at guarding against the three-point shot. Illinois averaged 77.0 points per game, while allowing 61.1 points per game, for an average point differential of nearly 16 points.

National statistical rankings (Division I)
Statistic Amount National rank
Points scored 3,002 4th
Assists 727 1st
Rebounding 1,338 9th
Three-point field goals made 344 2nd
Three-point field goal attempts 877 4th
Points allowed (defense) 2,382 8th

In blowout home games, 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) senior Nick Smith, the tallest player in University of Illinois basketball history, would take three-point shots from the top of the key. He made 4 of 11 on the season.

Regular Season[edit]

The Illini started the season by setting a school record with 29 straight wins, the third best start in Big Ten history and tying the 12th best start in NCAA annals. Illinois won its second-ever game over a No. 1-ranked opponent, crushing Wake Forest 91-73 at the Assembly Hall on December 1. After the win, the Illini took over the number 1 overall spot in the national polls and held it for the remainder of the regular season, a run of 15 straight weeks. On January 25, 2005, Illinois defeated Wisconsin 75-65 at the Kohl Center, snapping the Badgers' nation-leading 38-game home court winning streak. In the process, Illinois handed the Badgers their first home court loss since a defeat to, coincidentally, Wake Forest, on December 4, 2002, and also assumed the nation's longest home court winning streak themselves.

Illinois was ranked No. 1 in the final Associated Press poll of 2005, another first for the program. The Illini then went on to win to its second straight outright Big Ten Championship with a 15-1 record, as Weber became the first coach in 100 years of Big Ten basketball to win consecutive outright league championships in his first two seasons.

Post-Season[edit]

The Illini won the Big Ten Tournament, becoming just the second team to win both an outright Big Ten regular season title and the Big Ten Tournament in the same season. In the NCAA tournament, the overall number 1 seeded Illini won their first three games by double digits.

In an Elite Eight matchup, Illinois fell behind early to the University of Arizona due to poor shooting behind the three-point line and sensational play by Arizona's leaders Salim Stoudamire and Channing Frye. The game featured a 15-point comeback from the Illini, triggered by several steals and Deron Williams' clutch three-point shooting, including several NBA range threes, in the last 3 minutes and 30 seconds of the game.

The Illini then defeated The University of Louisville 72-57, the team's largest margin of victory in the tournament, to move on to the 2005 National Championship Game against North Carolina.

In the national championship game, Illinois was defeated by North Carolina 70-75. North Carolina relied upon stellar post play from Sean May, who managed to get James Augustine and Jack Ingram into foul trouble, while Illinois struggled offensively with what had succeeded the rest of the season, converting only 12 of a championship game record 40 three-point field goal attempts. James Augustine played 9 minutes due to foul trouble, forcing Jack Ingram to play a huge role in the second half comeback the Illini made. For almost the entire season, Illinois was ranked #1 and North Carolina was ranked #2, respectively, in all polls, and both teams were the favorites to meet in the national championship game. The North Carolina squad would go on to field six players in the NBA draft.

Accolades[edit]

Bruce Weber was named National Coach of the Year by nine organizations. Dee Brown, "The One Man Fast Break", was named The Sporting News National Player of the Year and swept the conference honors as well, being named both Big Ten Player of the Year and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. The Illini had three players earn consensus All-America honors in the same season for the first time ever. In addition to Brown earning consensus first-team All-America honors, Deron Williams and Luther Head were named consensus second-team All-Americans. Following the season, both Williams and Head were chosen in the first round of the NBA Draft, with Head being drafted No. 24 overall by the Houston Rockets while Williams became the highest Illinois player ever drafted when he was chosen No. 3 overall by the Utah Jazz.

Team[edit]

Roster[edit]

2004–05 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 4 Luther Head (C) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Manley High School Chicago, IL
G 5 Deron Williams (C) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr The Colony High School The Colony, TX
G 11 Dee Brown (C) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Proviso East High School Maywood, IL
G 15 Calvin Brock Current redshirt 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Fr Simeon High School Chicago, IL
G 33 Rich McBride 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) So Lanphier High School Springfield, IL
F 34 Fred Nkemdi (W) 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Riverside Brookfield High School/Morton Junior College North Riverside, IL
F/C 40 James Augustine 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Jr Lincoln-Way Central High School Mokena, IL
F 41 Warren Carter 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) So Lake Highlands High School Dallas, TX
F 42 Brian Randle Injured Current redshirt 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS So Notre Dame High School East Peoria, IL
F 43 Roger Powell, Jr. 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Joliet Central High School Joliet, IL
F 44 Marcus Arnold Current redshirt 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (113 kg) RS Jr Morgan Park High School/Illinois State University Chicago, IL
C 45 Nick Smith 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) 250 lb (113 kg) RS Sr Bloomingdale High School Valrico, FL
F/C 50 Jack Ingram 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) RS Sr Marshall High School/University of Tulsa San Antonio, TX
F 55 Shaun Pruitt 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Fr West Aurora High School Aurora, IL
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Depth chart[edit]

Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2 Bench 3
F/C James Augustine Nick Smith Shaun Pruitt
F Roger Powell, Jr. Jack Ingram Warren Carter Fred Nkemdi
SG Dee Brown Rich McBride
SG Luther Head
PG Deron Williams

Injuries[edit]

Freshman Brian Randle took a medical redshirt after punching a wall in frustration and breaking his hand during preseason practice.[2]

Records[edit]

Season records
Type of record Record
Overall 37–2
Regular season 29–1
Conference 15–1
Non-conference 14–0
Home 15–0
Road 9–1
Neutral 5–0
Neutral (including tournaments) 13–1
Blowouts (10+ points) 31–0

Schedule[edit]

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
Fri, Nov 5*
7:00 PM 		No. 5 Southern Illinois-Edwardsville W 78–58 
Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Sun, Nov 14*
3:00 PM 		No. 5 Lewis W 92–61 
Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Non-Conference regular season
Fri, Nov 19*
7:05 PM 		No. 6 Delaware State W 87–67  1–0
 Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Sun, Nov 21*
1:00 PM 		No. 6 Florida A&M W 91–60  2–0
 Assembly Hall (15,518)
Champaign, IL
Wed, Nov 24*
7:05 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 5 Oakland W 85–54  3–0
 Assembly Hall (13,932)
Champaign, IL
Sat, Nov 27*
1:00 PM, WBBM 		No. 5 vs. No. 24 Gonzaga W 89–72  4–0
 Conseco Fieldhouse (14,183)
Indianapolis, IN
Wed, Dec 1*
6:05 PM, ESPN 		No. 5 No. 1 Wake Forest
ACC-Big Ten Challenge 		W 91–73  5–0
 Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Sat, Dec 4*
1:00 PM, ESPN 		No. 5 at Arkansas W 72–60  6–0
 Alltel Arena (13,140)
North Little Rock, AR
Mon, Dec 6*
7:05 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 5 Chicago State W 78–59  7–0
 Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Thu, Dec 9*
7:30 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 1 at Georgetown W 74–59  8–0
 MCI Center (12,401)
Washington, DC
Sat, Dec 11*
1:00 PM, ESPN 		No. 1 vs. Oregon W 83–66  9–0
 United Center (21,224)
Chicago, IL
Sun, Dec 19*
4:00 PM 		No. 1 Valparaiso W 93–56  10–0
 Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Wed, Dec 22*
7:05 PM, ESPN2 		No. 1 vs. Missouri
Braggin' Rights 		W 70–64  11–0
 Savvis Center (22,153)
St. Louis, MO
Mon, Dec 27*
7:05 PM 		No. 1 Longwood W 105–79  12–0
 Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Thu, Dec 30*
4:00 PM, FSN 		No. 1 vs. Northwestern State
Las Vegas Holiday Classic 		W 69–51  13–0
 Valley High (2,500)
Las Vegas, NV
Fri, Dec 31*
5:00 PM, FSN 		No. 1 vs. No. 22 Cincinnati
Las Vegas Holiday Classic 		W 67–45  14–0
 Valley High (2,500)
Las Vegas, NV
Big Ten regular season
Wed, Jan 5
8:05 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 1 Ohio State W 84–65  15–0
(1–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Sat, Jan 8
4:00 PM, CBS 		No. 1 at Purdue W 68–59  16–0
(2–0) 		Mackey Arena (14,123)
West Lafayette, IN
Wed, Jan 12
8:00 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 1 Penn State W 90–64  17–0
(3–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Sat, Jan 15
3:30 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 1 at Northwestern W 78–66  18–0
(4–0) 		Welsh-Ryan Arena (8,117)
Evanston, IL
Thu, Jan 20
6:00 PM, ESPN 		No. 1 No. 23 Iowa
Rivalry 		W 73–68 OT 19–0
(5–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Tue, Jan 25
8:00 PM, ESPN 		No. 1 at No. 18 Wisconsin W 75–65  20–0
(6–0) 		Kohl Center (17,142)
Madison, WI
Sat, Jan 29
1:30 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 1 Minnesota W 89–66  21–0
(7–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,694)
Champaign, IL
Tue, Feb 1
7:05 PM, ESPN 		No. 1 at No. 12 Michigan State W 81–68  22–0
(8–0) 		Breslin Center (14,759)
East Lansing, MI
Sun, Feb 6
12:00 PM, CBS 		No. 1 Indiana
Rivalry 		W 60–47  23–0
(9–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Tue, Feb 8
7:05 PM, ESPN 		No. 1 at Michigan W 57–51  24–0
(10–0) 		Crisler Arena (13,751)
Ann Arbor, MI
Sat, Feb 12
12:00 PM, CBS 		No. 1 No. 20 Wisconsin W 70–59  25–0
(11–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,865)
Champaign, IL
Wed, Feb 16
8:05 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 1 at Penn State W 83–63  26–0
(12–0) 		Bryce Jordan Center (10,966)
University Park, PA
Sat, Feb 19
11:05 AM, ESPN 		No. 1 at Iowa
Rivalry 		W 75–65  27–0
(13–0) 		Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500)
Iowa City, IA
Wed, Feb 23
7:05 PM, ESPN Plus 		No. 1 Northwestern W 84–48  28–0
(14–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Thu, Mar 3
8:00 PM, ESPN2 		No. 1 Purdue W 84–50  29–0
(15–0) 		Assembly Hall (16,618)
Champaign, IL
Sun, Mar 6
12:00 PM, CBS 		No. 1 at Ohio State L 64–65  29–1
(15–1) 		Value City Arena (19,200)
Columbus, OH
Big Ten Tournament
Fri, Mar 11
11:00 AM, ESPN 		No. 1 vs. Northwestern
Quarterfinals 		W 68–51  30–1
 United Center (22,413)
Chicago, IL
Sat, Mar 12
11:00 AM, CBS 		No. 1 vs. Minnesota
Semifinals 		W 64–56  31–1
 United Center (23,697)
Chicago, IL
Sun, Mar 13
12:00 PM, CBS 		No. 1 vs. No. 23 Wisconsin
Championship Game 		W 54–43  32–1
 United Center (22,157)
Chicago, IL
NCAA Tournament
Thu, Mar 17*
9:40 PM, CBS 		(1) No. 1 vs. (16) Farleigh Dickinson
First Round 		W 67–55  33–1
 RCA Dome (26,804)
Indianapolis, IN
Sat, Mar 19*
5:40 PM, CBS 		(1) No. 1 vs. (9) Nevada
Second Round 		W 71–59  34–1
 RCA Dome (40,331)
Indianapolis, IN
Thu, Mar 24*
6:27 PM, CBS 		(1) No. 1 vs. (12) Milwaukee
Sweet Sixteen 		W 77–63  35–1
 Allstate Arena (16,957)
Rosemont, IL
Sat, Mar 26*
5:40 PM, CBS 		(1) No. 1 vs. (3) No. 9 Arizona
Elite Eight 		W 90–89 OT 36–1
 Allstate Arena (16,957)
Rosemont, IL
Sat, Apr 2*
5:07 PM, CBS 		(1) No. 1 vs. (4) No. 4 Louisville
Final Four 		W 72–57  37–1
 Edward Jones Dome (47,754)
St. Louis, MO
Mon, Apr 4*
8:21 PM, CBS 		(1) No. 1 vs. (1) No. 2 North Carolina
National Championship 		L 70–75  37–2
 Edward Jones Dome (47,262)
St. Louis, MO
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Season Statistics[edit]

Legend
  GP  Games played   GS  Games started  Avg  Average per game
  FG  Field-goals made  FGA  Field-goal attempts  Off  Offensive rebounds
 Def  Defensive rebounds   A  Assists   TO Turnovers
 Blk  Blocks  Stl  Steals  High  Team high
Statistics[3]
Minutes Scoring Total FGs 3-point FGs Free-Throws Rebounds
Player GP GS Tot Avg Pts Avg FG FGA Pct 3FG 3FA Pct FT FTA Pct Off Def Tot Avg A TO Blk Stl
Head, Luther 39 39 1297 33.3 622 15.9 214 462 .463 116 283 .410 78 99 .788 24 131 155 4.0 150 69 9 67
Brown, Dee 39 39 1272 32.6 518 13.3 179 359 .499 99 228 .434 61 79 .772 21 83 104 2.7 177 73 3 70
Williams, Deron 39 39 1315 33.7 489 12.5 178 411 .433 68 187 .364 65 96 .677 14 128 142 3.6 264 109 8 38
Powell, Roger 39 39 979 25.1 467 12.0 175 319 .549 20 52 .385 97 133 .729 103 119 222 5.7 16 42 9 25
Augustine, James 39 39 1037 26.6 392 10.1 141 227 .621 0 0 .000 110 147 .748 100 195 295 7.6 43 46 46 36
Ingram, Jack 39 0 589 15.1 174 4.5 71 150 .473 9 23 .391 23 29 .793 51 56 107 2.7 17 15 20 26
Smith, Nick 38 0 413 10.9 127 3.3 54 133 .406 4 11 .364 15 23 .652 20 58 78 2.1 24 21 18 11
McBride, Rich 38 0 546 14.4 98 2.6 32 99 .323 27 87 .310 7 7 1.000 16 35 51 1.3 29 19 2 15
Carter, Warren 33 0 261 7.9 74 2.2 32 62 .516 1 6 .167 9 19 .474 19 39 58 1.8 5 14 6 9
Pruitt, Shaun 21 0 97 4.6 29 1.4 10 26 .385 0 0 .000 9 18 .500 10 9 19 0.9 0 10 1 3
Nkemdi, Fred 18 0 44 2.4 12 0.7 6 10 .600 0 0 .000 0 1 .000 4 2 6 0.3 2 6 1 0
Team 43 58 101 4
Total 39 7850 3002 77.0 1092 2258 .484 344 877 .392 474 651 .728 425 913 1338 34.3 727 428 123 300
Opponents 39 7850 2382 61.1 869 2094 .415 233 651 .358 411 618 .665 407 815 1222 31.3 482 580 99 196

Awards and honors[edit]

Team players drafted into the NBA[edit]

Year Player NBA Club Round Pick
2005 Deron Williams Utah Jazz 1 3
2005 Luther Head Houston Rockets 1 24
2006 James Augustine Orlando Magic 2 41
2006 Dee Brown Utah Jazz 2 46

[7]

Rankings[edit]

Main article: 2004–05 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

References[edit]

  1. ^ "2005 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll". College Poll Archive. March 15, 2005.
  2. ^ "Randle throws a KO punch". chicagotribune.com. November 11, 2004. Retrieved November 1, 2014.
  3. ^ 2004-05 Illinois Season Statistics Archived 2009-03-24 at the Wayback Machine, FightingIllini.com
  4. ^ List of MVPs
  5. ^ List of MVPs
  6. ^ List of MVPs
  7. ^ 2005 NBA Draft Archived 2010-03-18 at the Wayback Machine

External links[edit]

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