2003–04 Florida A&M Rattlers basketball team

2003–04 Florida A&M Rattlers basketball
MEAC tournament champions
ConferenceMid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Record15–17 (10–8 MEAC)
Head coach
Home arenaJake Gaither Gymnasium
Seasons
2003–04 MEAC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
South Carolina State 14 – 4   .778 18 – 11   .621
Coppin State 14 – 4   .778 18 – 14   .563
Delaware State 11 – 7   .611 13 – 15   .464
Hampton 11 – 7   .611 13 – 17   .433
Florida A&M † 10 – 8   .556 15 – 17   .469
Norfolk State 10 – 8   .556 12 – 17   .414
Morgan State 9 – 9   .500 11 – 16   .407
Bethune–Cookman 7 – 11   .389 8 – 21   .276
Maryland Eastern Shore 6 – 12   .333 8 – 21   .276
Howard 4 – 14   .222 6 – 22   .214
North Carolina A&T 3 – 15   .167 3 – 25   .107
† 2004 MEAC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

The 2003–04 Florida A&M Rattlers men's basketball team represented Florida A&M University during the 2003–04 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Rattlers, led by head coach Mike Gillespie, played their home games at the Teaching Gym as members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. They finished the season 15–17, 10–8 in MEAC play to finish in fifth place in the conference regular season standings. They broke through to capture the MEAC tournament and secure the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Playing as one of two No. 16 seeds in the Midwest region, The Rattlers defeated fellow No. 16 seed Lehigh in the play-in game[2] before losing to No. 1 seed Kentucky, 96–76.[3]

Roster

2003–04 Florida A&M Rattlers men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 12 Brandin Jay 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr Memphis, Tennessee
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

[4]

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
Nov 23, 2003*
 at Illinois State L 70–87  0–1
 Redbird Arena 
Normal, Illinois
Nov 25, 2003*
 Cleveland State L 88–97  0–2
 Gaither Athletic Center 
Tallahassee, Florida
Nov 28, 2003*
 at No. 25 NC State L 62–92  0–3
 RBC Center 
Raleigh, North Carolina
Dec 2, 2003*
 at No. 2 Florida L 78–102  0–4
 Stephen C. O'Connell Center 
Gainesville, Florida
Dec 5, 2003*
 at Georgia L 59–77  0–5
 Stegeman Coliseum 
Athens, Georgia
Dec 14, 2003*
 at Alabama State L 69–75  0–6
 Joe L. Reed Acadome 
Montgomery, Alabama
Dec 22, 2003*
 at Marquette L 63–83  1–8
 Bradley Center 
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
MEAC regular season
MEAC tournament
Mar 11, 2004*
 vs. Hampton
Quarterfinals 		W 72–71  12–16
 Arthur Ashe Athletic Center 
Norfolk, Virginia
Mar 12, 2004*
 vs. South Carolina State
Semifinals 		W 65–53  13–16
 Arthur Ashe Athletic Center 
Norfolk, Virginia
Mar 13, 2004*
 vs. Coppin State
Championship game 		W 58–51  14–16
 Arthur Ashe Athletic Center 
Norfolk, Virginia
NCAA tournament
Mar 16, 2004*
 (16 MW) vs. (16 MW) Lehigh
Play-in game 		W 72–57  15–16
 UD Arena 
Dayton, Ohio
Mar 19, 2004*
 (16 MW) vs. (1 MW) No. 2 Kentucky
First round 		L 76–96  15–17
 Nationwide Arena 
Columbus, Ohio
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=Midwest.
All times are in Eastern Time.

[5]

References

  1. ^ sports-reference.com 2003-04 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ "FAMU Beats Lehigh, Advances to Play Kentucky". Orlando Sentinel. March 17, 2004. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
  3. ^ "Fitch scores 26 in high-scoring affair". ESPN. March 20, 2004. Archived from the original on July 23, 2023. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
  4. ^ "2003-04 Men's Basketball Roster". Florida A&M University Athletics. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
  5. ^ "2003-04 Men's Basketball Schedule". Florida A&M University Athletics. Retrieved July 23, 2023.