Nov. 18, 2004
FAIRBANKS, Alaska - With expectations soaring following last year's campaign, the Northwestern men's basketball team is ready to get rolling in 2004-05. And so the Wildcats will start by taking on the Top of the World.
Or should we say, the Top of the World field.
Northwestern is participating in the eight-team tournament, which began Thursday in Fairbanks, Alaska. The Wildcats -- who arrived in Fairbanks at 12:45 a.m. AT (3:45 a.m. Central) Thursday morning -- will play their first game Friday night against the University of Portland. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. AT (9 p.m. Central).
The other teams in the field include Western Michigan and Central Florida, both of whom made last year's NCAA Tournament. Utah State, New Mexico State, Georgia Southern and host UAF -- the preseason No. 2 team in NCAA Division II -- round out the field.
Depending upon Friday's result, NU will meet either Western Michigan or New Mexico State Saturday. The `Cats will also play Sunday. A full tournament schedule is below.
The Top of the World Classic games will not be televised, and WGN Radio will not be broadcasting from Alaska. However, fans can follow the action on the Internet by going to www.sportsjuice.com and clicking on the site's full schedule. Links to all of the tournament games can be found at that site. You can also reach audio broadcasts through the tournament's official website, www.towc.org.
TOP OF THE WORLD CLASSIC SCHEDULE (all times Central)
Thursday, Nov. 18
Game 1 - Central Florida 74, UAF 63
Game 2 - Utah State 71, Georgia Southern 61
Friday, Nov. 19
Game 3 - Northwestern 56, Portland 53
Game 4 - New Mexico State 65, Western Michigan 61 (ot)
Saturday, Nov. 20
Game 7 - Central Florida 55, Utah State 52
Game 6 - Portland 67, Western Michigan 64
Game 5 - Georgia Southern 78, UAF 75
Game 8 - New Mexico State 64, Northwestern 61
Sunday, Nov. 21
Game 11 - Portland 74, Georgia Southern 60
Game 10 - Utah State 64, Northwestern 57
Game 9 - Western Michigan 88, UAF 65
Game 12 (championship) - Central Florida 62, New Mexico State 58
Tournament Schedule Notes:
NU NOTES FOR TOP OF THE WORLD CLASSIC
*NU Probable Starters (2003-04 stats in parentheses)
G - T.J. Parker (1), 6-1, 185 (8.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg)
G - Mohamed Hachad (14), 6-4, 195 (8.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg)
G - Tim Doyle (00), 6-5, 215 (1.3 ppg, 0.9 rpg at St. John's in 02-03)
F - Vedran Vukusic (11), 6-8, 240 (14.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg)
C - Davor Duvancic (31), 6-8, 235 (6.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg)
*This is Northwestern's first trip to Alaska; in fact, it marks just the Wildcats' fifth trip outside of the contiguous United States to play regular-season games (trips to Hawaii in 1967, 1971 and 1996; San Juan, Puerto Rico in 2000).
*NU and Portland are meeting for the first time in men's basketball; in fact, the Wildcats are playing just their second team from the West Coast Conference (NU is 0-2 vs. Pepperdine, including a loss in the Bill Carmody era). The schools that make up the WCC are Portland, Pepperdine, Gonzaga, Loyola Marymount, St. Mary's (Calif.), San Diego, San Francisco and Santa Clara.
*NU's record against the rest of the tournament field:
UAF: 0-0
Central Florida: 0-0
Georgia Southern: 0-0
New Mexico State: 0-0
Utah State: 0-0
Western Michigan: 19-5