College Basketball’s Measure of Success

The college basketball landscape can be measured by three levels of success. Schools that have decades of success with numerous coaches, schools that have been built into powerhouses by a specific coach, and schools that have had dream seasons that exceeded normal expectations.

The schools with long-standing traditions are practically able to pick and choose the players they want. Schools such as North Carolina, Kansas, and Kentucky have had success as far back as the 1940s.

Coaches that have built and rebuilt their schools include Louisville's Rick Pitino, Mike Krzyzewski of Duke, Lute Olson at Arizona, and Gary Williams at Maryland. Louisville and Duke had had measured success in previous eras, while Olson and Williams were the first coaches in their schools' history to lead them to a Final Four.

Many schools have had dream seasons that placed their program in the limelight for the first time or saw a school have a season that went beyond past achievements. In the first of a three-part series, I will examine schools that have had teams play above their university's usual expectations.

Entering the 1978-79 season, it was widely known that Larry Bird was one of the nation's best players. In that era, a player could be selected in the NBA draft if his class had graduated. Because of his transfer from Indiana to Indiana State, Bird was eligible for the 1978 draft. The Celtics' Red Auerbach took advantage and drafted the future Larry Legend. Bird was the cornerstone and only returning starter on an unproven team that went 22-9 the season before.

At the beginning of the 1978-79 season, Sycamore head coach Bob King was lost to an illness and assistant Bill Hodges assumed the reigns. Hodges had no previous head coaching experience. Led by Bird (28.6 ppg, 14.9 rpg) and future NBA player Carl Nicks (19.3 ppg), the Sycamores finished 33-1, with its only loss to Magic Johnson and Michigan State in the NCAA Championship Game. In what is still the most-watched NCAA Championship Game ever, the Spartans had too much firepower for Indiana State and captured its first NCAA championship with a 75-64 victory.

In the 26 seasons since that game, Indiana State has made only two NCAA tournament appearances with their only win in 2001 over Oklahoma. After Bird went on to a legendary career leading the Celtics to three NBA Championships, Hodges lasted only four more seasons in Terra Haute. After the 33-1 season in 1979, Hodges managed only a 34-47 record in his last four years at ISU. He would later compile a 62-104 record in six seasons at Mercer (GA).

Not much was expected of Marquette entering the 2002-03 season. Dwayne Wade was entering his junior year with only one season of college experience after sitting out his freshman year as a non-qualifier. Robert Jackson had transferred in from Mississippi with only one year of eligibility remaining and Travis Diener was in his first year as the Golden Eagles' starting Point guard.

In 2002, Marquette went 26-7 and was upset by Tulsa in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Wade had improved his scoring average from 17.8 ppg on '02 to 21.5 in '03. Jackson was a big addition in the middle and Diener was the kind of dangerous shooter that many teams ride for long tournament runs.

After a five-game winning streak to end the regular season, the Golden Eagles lost to UAB in their first game in the Conference USA tournament. Marquette improved their status from a five-seed in 2002 to a three-seed in 2003. After tight wins over Holy Cross, Missouri, and Pittsburgh, Marquette caught a break when Kentucky's Keith Bogans was hurt in the Sweet 16. Marquette was able to take advantage and advanced to their first Final Four with an 83-69 victory over the Wildcats in the regional final in Minneapolis.

Wade was the catalyst behind Marquette's first Final Four appearance since Al McGuire led them to the school's only national championship in 1977. The Eagles dream ended when they were dominated by Kansas in the national semifinal. KU bolted to a big halftime lead. Diener was only able to connect on 1-11 from the field and Marquette's dream season came to an abrupt end. After the run, Wade left for NBA riches in South Beach. Diener was unable to carry the load and Marquette has not been back to the NCAA tournament since.

The 2004 Cinderella team was led by an unlikely coach and a pint-sized point guard. St. Joseph's last big splash in the NCAA tourney was when they pulled off what might have been the original March Madness shocker nationally. They stunned No. 1 DePaul in the second round in 1981.

With the backcourt of Jameer Nelson and Delonte West returning for the 2004 season, expectations were high in Philadelphia for Phil Martelli and company. They far exceeded expectations. They battled with Stanford all year long for national supremacy. Both schools took undefeated records deep into the season. After Stanford lost at Washington, the focus was on the Hawks. St. Joe finished the regular season undefeated and entered the Atlantic 10 tournament as the nation's No. 1 team. Their undefeated regular season was the first since UNLV advanced to the national semifinals unscathed.

Playing Xavier in Dayton, just 50 miles up the road proved to be too daunting of a task. St. Joe suffered its first loss of the season to Xavier in the A-10 tournament. Other the ending their dream of an undefeated season, the loss mattered little. The Hawks were still named the No. 1 seed in the East. The region's top seed was the first in school history. The Hawks defeated Liberty, Texas Tech, and Wake Forest to set up a showdown with Oklahoma State for a trip to the Final Four.

A John Lucas three-pointer gave the Cowboys a two point victory and sent them to the Final Four in New Orleans. Nelson and Martelli captured the National Player of Year and Coach of the Year awards respectively as St. Joe enjoyed its best season in school history. Building on that success will be the key to how much the 2004 season actually means.

Their status in the big time was magnified when West left after his junior season in '04 and center Dwayne Jones moved on the NBA early in 2005. After an up-and-down preseason, the 2005 Hawks turned it up in Atlantic 10 play. They finished 14-2 in conference play, but had to settle for the NIT after losing to George Washington in the A-10 championship game.

Illinois has had many teams that had been predicted to make waves in the NCAA tournament. The 2005 Illini had the best chance since the 1989 Illini to advance to the Final Four. In 2001, Illinois lost to Arizona in the regional final and that was the only time since 1989 that Illinois played for a chance to advance to the NCAA's big stage. That was under Bill Self, who left to coach Kansas after the 2003 season. Bruce Weber was stepping up to the big time after leading Southern Illinois to the Sweet 16 in 2002.

The 2005 season was the most successful in Illinois history. They were expected to contend for the Big 10 title, but these Illini far exceeded expectations. The Illini remained undefeated until a March loss at Ohio State and then cruised through the Big 10 Tournament to record the double of Big 10 regular season and tournament titles.

In the NCAA tournament, there was a lot of noise nationally that Illinois would have a big advantage by being able to play all of its tournament games within a three-hour drive from campus. The Illini opened in Indianapolis and after winning two games moved on to Chicago. The Illini used a balanced attack with all five starters in averaging in double figures. Weber was named the National Coach of the Year, Dee Brown and Deron Williams were All-Americans, and with 37 victories, Illinois tied the 1986 Duke team for the most victories in one season.

But like Duke, Illinois fell one victory shy of their ultimate goal with a loss in the National Championship Game. Their historic comeback from 15 points down in the final four minutes to send them to the Final Four will become a part of the NCAA's storied history.

How Illinois is able to follow-up their great 2005 season will show if this past season was a dream season or merely a step to becoming one of the nation's premiere programs. Williams left a year early for the NBA and Roger Powell and Luther Head both used up their eligibility. Weber's legacy might depend on how he builds on last season. The return of starters Brown and center James Augustine will be good building blocks.

The schools that have a lasting legacy and place in college basketball have used big seasons as a stepping-stone to a national name and big recruiting classes. Duke's 1986 trip to the NCAA Championship Game helped land players like Quinn Snyder and Christian Laettner. Arizona rode a 1988 Final Four trip to land players like Chris Mills and Brian Williams. The key to long-term success is to have a big-name coach who can recruit nationally and build a big-name program. How well Marquette, St. Joseph's, and Illinois are able to parlay their dream seasons into national success will be born out in the next few seasons.