2003–04 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2003–04 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 10, 2003, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 2004 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament Championship Game on April 5, 2004 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The Connecticut Huskies won their second NCAA national championship with an 82–73 victory over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
Season headlines
- The preseason AP All-American team was named on November 12. Emeka Okafor of Connecticut was the leading vote-getter. The rest of the team included Jameer Nelson of Saint Joseph's, Rickey Paulding of Missouri, Ike Diogu of Arizona State and Raymond Felton of North Carolina.
Major rule changes
- Officials could consult courtside monitor at the end of either half or any extra period to determine: if a field-goal try beat the horn; whether a shot-clock violation at the end of the first half beat the horn; or, whether a shot-clock violation that would determine the outcome of a game beat the horn. The officials also could use a courtside monitor to correct a timer’s mistake or to determine if the game clock or shot clock expired at or near the end of a period.
- A team would have control when a player of that team had disposal of the ball for a throw-in.
Season outlook
Pre-season polls
The top 25 from the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Polls November 13, 2003.Conference membership changes
These schools joined new conferences for the 2003–04 season.| School | Former conference | New conference |
| Centenary | NCAA Division I Independent | Mid-Continent Conference |
| Elon | Big South Conference | Southern Conference |
| Jacksonville State | Atlantic Sun Conference | Ohio Valley Conference |
| Lipscomb | NCAA Division I Independent | Atlantic Sun Conference |
| Morris Brown | NCAA Division I Independent | Defunct |
| Samford | Atlantic Sun Conference | Ohio Valley Conference |
| UMBC | Northeast Conference | America East Conference |
| VMI | Southern Conference | Big South Conference |
Regular season
Conference winners and tournaments
Statistical leaders
Postseason tournaments
NCAA Tournament
Final Four – [Alamodome], [San Antonio, Texas]
National Invitation Tournament
Semifinals & Finals
Award winners
Consensus All-American teams
Major player of the year awards
- Wooden Award: Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Naismith Award: Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Associated Press Player of the Year: Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- NABC Player of the Year: Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Oscar Robertson Trophy : Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Adolph Rupp Trophy: Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- CBS/Chevrolet Player of the Year: Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Sporting News Player of the Year: Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
Major freshman of the year awards
- USBWA Freshman of the Year: Luol Deng, Duke
- Sporting News Freshman of the Year: Chris Paul, Wake Forest
Major coach of the year awards
- Associated Press Coach of the Year: Phil Martelli, St. Joseph's
- Henry Iba Award : Phil Martelli, St. Joseph's
- NABC Coach of the Year: Phil Martelli, St. Joseph's & Mike Montgomery, Stanford
- Naismith College Coach of the Year: Phil Martelli, St. Joseph's
- CBS/Chevrolet Coach of the Year: Phil Martelli, St. Joseph's
- Adolph Rupp Cup: Phil Martelli, St. Joseph's
- Sporting News Coach of the Year: Mike Montgomery, Stanford
Other major awards
- Bob Cousy Award : Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Pete Newell Big Man Award : Emeka Okafor, Connecticut
- NABC Defensive Player of the Year: Emeka Okafor, Connecticut
- Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award : Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Lowe's Senior CLASS Award : Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- Robert V. Geasey Trophy : Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's
- NIT/Haggerty Award : Andre Barrett, Seton Hall, and Luis Flores, Manhattan
Coaching changes
| Team | Former Coach | Interim Coach | New Coach | Reason |
| Air Force | Joe Scott | Chris Mooney | ||
| Akron | Dan Hipsher | Keith Dambrot | ||
| Auburn | Cliff Ellis | Jeff Lebo | ||
| Chattanooga | Jeff Lebo | John Shulman | ||
| Dartmouth | Dave Faucher | Terry Dunn | ||
| Eastern Washington | Ray Giacoletti | Mike Burns | ||
| Florida International | Donnie Marsh | Sergio Rouco | ||
| Georgetown | Craig Esherick | John Thompson III | ||
| Houston | Ray McCallum | Tom Penders | ||
| James Madison | Sherman Dillard | Dean Keener | ||
| Louisiana-Lafayette | Jessie Evans | Robert Lee | ||
| La Salle | Billy Hahn | John Giannini | Hahn resigned following rape allegations against two of his players. | |
| Loyola | Scott Hicks | Jimmy Patsos | ||
| Loyola | Larry Farmer | Jim Whitesell | ||
| Maine | John Giannini | Ted Woodward | ||
| Marist | Dave Magarity | Matt Brady | ||
| UMBC | Tom Sullivan | Randy Monroe | ||
| Maryland-Eastern Shore | Thomas Trotter | Larry Lessett | ||
| Miami | Perry Clark | Frank Haith | ||
| Montana | Pat Kennedy | Larry Krystkowiak | Montana hired Grizzlies' all-time leading scorer & Idaho Stampede head coach Krystkowiak. | |
| Navy | Don DeVoe | Billy Lange | ||
| Nevada | Trent Johnson | Mark Fox | Nevada promoted top assistant Fox after Johnson left for Stanford. | |
| Ohio State | Jim O'Brien | Thad Matta | O'Brien was fired after recruiting violations involving Aleksandar Radojević surfaced. | |
| Princeton | John Thompson III | Joe Scott | ||
| San Francisco | Philip Mathews | Jessie Evans | ||
| Southern Illinois | Matt Painter | Chris Lowery | Painter left to be top assistant at his alma mater, Purdue. | |
| Southern Methodist | Mike Dement | Robert Lineburg | Jimmy Tubbs | SMU fired Dement with three games left in the regular-season. |
| Southern Miss | James Green | Larry Eustachy | ||
| St. John's | Mike Jarvis | Kevin Clark | Norm Roberts | |
| Stanford | Mike Montgomery | Trent Johnson | Montgomery left to become head coach of the Golden State Warriors. | |
| Texas A&M | Melvin Watkins | Billy Gillispie | ||
| Texas-Pan American | Bob Hoffman | Robert Davenport | ||
| Towson | Michael Hunt | Pat Kennedy | ||
| Utah | Rick Majerus | Ray Giacoletti | ||
| UNLV | Charlie Spoonhour | Lon Kruger | ||
| UTEP | Billy Gillispie | Doc Sadler | ||
| Xavier | Thad Matta | Sean Miller |