Two Big Ten conference title contenders will take the floor of Huff Hall on Friday evening. The volleyball nets will be put away and the basketball hoops will be pulled down for Midnight Madness and the start of the 2003-2004 women's and men's basketball seasons.

"I'm kind of pumped for it," said junior guard Angelina Williams. "It starts off the new season giving us a little fun before the season starts, before practice starts."

Huff Hall's doors open at 10 p.m. with activities beginning around 10:30 p.m. WCIA-TV (Ch. 4) will broadcast live from Huff starting at 11:30 p.m.

The teams will scrimmage starting at midnight and festivities will conclude around 12:30 a.m. Between 10:30 p.m. and midnight the players will participate in a three-point shooting contest. They will also go through lay-up lines that give players a chance to put on a dunking display.

Midnight Madness should be the start of successful seasons for both Illinois basketball teams.

"Obviously, we think we have a pretty good team and it's the start and you want to be there when it actually does start and get everyone excited about it," Illinois men's head coach Bruce Weber said. "To see the new guys, I think that's always fun to see who comes and what they're doing and I think when you add the contests in there, the dunk contest, everyone wants to see that."

Only one senior graduated from the women's team that finished sixth in the Big Ten last season. Despite their finish, the women were just one win from a three-way tie for fourth.

Traveling through Europe during the summer helped the men's team already coming off a Big Ten Conference Tournament Championship in 2003.

Junior guard Luther Head anticipates playing with the noise of the Illinois crowd ringing through Huff instead of the silence that surrounds the players when scrimmaging at the Ubben practice facility.

"It'll be fun just to get to play in front of the fans again," Head said. "It's different from just playing by yourself or with your teammates in the practice gym, so it will be real fun."

Head's dunk theatrics wowed the crowd during Midnight Madness the past two years, but secrecy is keeping Head from speaking about his plans for his 2003 Huff Hall performance.

"I'm just going out there trying to do something to make everybody feel good," Head said. "I don't know what it's going to be, I just go with the flow."

Weber watched a healthy Head play during the summer and thinks the fans will be in for a treat.

"They didn't get to see the true Luther Head last year being injured and I think he's come back and done well," Weber said. "Hopefully, we can keep him healthy."

Williams expects the Illinois fans to like what they see from the talented freshmen brought in by Illinois women's head coach Theresa Grentz.

"I think some will be impressed with our freshman class," Williams said. "I think they'll be a key for us this year. It's going to be exciting, a lot of new faces to look at and a lot of returning faces. The whole atmosphere should be fun."