April 24, 2003
Fairfield basketball fans could take their pick of highlights when discussing the successful campaign. Maybe it would be the wins over NCAA tournament teams like UNC-Wilmington or Manhattan. Perhaps it would be an appearance on ESPN during the MAAC championship game. Better yet, it could be a home game in the prestigious National Invitational Tournament, where more than 6,500 fans witnessed as the Big East and MAAC clashed.
Regardless of your preference, the 2002-03 men's basketball team certainly gave its fans plenty of excitement during the special year. And what's equally important, most of the unit will return for the 2003-04 campaign.
One of the reasons for the quick development of the team's youth came in the form of three experienced seniors. Nick Delfico, Ajou Deng and Oscar Garcia each played a key role in this year's 19-win season. Garcia developed into one of the top inside men in the MAAC, finishing up as the team's second leading scorer and rebounder with 12.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per contest, respectively.
Delfico was next in line with 8.9 points per game, always prepared to boost the offense whether he started the game or came off the bench. Deng slowly worked his way back into the lineup following pre-season surgery. He helped the team as a shot blocker, but also had the ability to pop out and hit a three-pointer.
The junior class included just one player, but Rob Thomson certainly held his own. The center appeared in all 31 games, and averaged 4.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and better than a block per contest. He returns for the 2003-04 campaign as the team's most experienced post player.
Sophomores Deng Gai, Kudjo Sogadzi and Tyquawn Goode all led their teammates in an offensive category this year. Gai was the team's top scorer (12.8 ppg), rebounder (6.8 rpg) and shot blocker (3.9 bpg). Sogadzi tallied a team-high 29 three-pointers, four better than classmate Goode. Goode finished up the year with a team-high 115 assists, which also placed among the conference's leaders. This threesome provides the base on which Fairfield will continue to build its program.
The freshmen came into their own very quickly, as Michael Bell, Dewitt Maxwell and Terrence Todd became mainstays in the lineup. All three rookies averaged better than 14 minutes per game, led by Todd's 25 minutes per outing.
Bell, who missed nine games with mono, proved he is an outside shooting threat. Twelve of his 36 field goals came from outside the three-point arc. Maxwell established himself as one of the team's top offensive rebounders, leading the team with 58. His 117 total rebounds were fourth among his teammates.
Todd's playing time was second only to Deng Gai's 29 minutes per game. The guard excelled in all aspects of the game, shooting 42 percent from the floor and 78 percent from the foul line. His pin-point passing also helped him become one of the conference's assist leaders, dishing off 99 in 31 games.
Brad Feleccia, Charles Bentley, Paul Brown, Alvin Carter and Mark Wilson also played various roles with the team this year. Feleccia received the most playing time of the three, as he appeared in 23 of the team's 31 games.
"Every player contributed to our success this season," Head Coach Tim O'Toole said. "That's what makes this such a special team. So many teams have one or two guys that carry a team. That wasn't the case for our team.
"Every night, someone else would step up and make big plays. And, the rest of the team would then feed off that. This was a special year."
There aren't many people that would argue that point Coach.
