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Washington fires coach Lorenzo Romar after 15 seasons

Washington head coach Lorenzo Romar looks up at the scoreboard and sees a 30-point Gonzaga lead during the first half of a game at the McCarthey Athletic Center in December. He was fired on Wednesday. (Colin Mulvany / The Spokesman-Review)
By Tim Booth Associated Press

SEATTLE – Washington fired coach Lorenzo Romar on Wednesday after 15 seasons at the school, a fate that seemed certain once the Huskies failed to receive a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth straight year despite a steady stream of NBA talent.

Washington athletic director Jennifer Cohen announced the decision Wednesday, although a split between Romar and his alma mater seemed destined as the Huskies slogged through another lackluster season – even with freshman star Markelle Fultz, a projected top-five NBA draft pick.

Romar was 298-196 in his 15 seasons with the Huskies and was responsible for reinvigorating a downtrodden program, taking Washington to six NCAA Tournaments and three appearances in the Sweet 16. But Romar’s shortcoming was never getting Washington to a Final Four despite a glut of talented players.

Washington went 9-22 this season, the worst of Romar’s tenure, and was 2-16 in conference play.

Washington closed the season on a school-record 13-game losing streak, capped by a loss to Southern California in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 Tournament. The Huskies were led by the dynamic Fultz, but Romar could never get the rest of Washington’s roster to match the guard’s productivity.

It was continuation of a trend that hounded Romar’s tenure at Washington. He was able to recruit star players, but was never able to fully capitalize on the talent he amassed.

Romar deserves credit for making Washington into a basketball school, especially early in his tenure at the school. His downfall was the inability to sustain the standard he created. Romar took the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 2004, was a No. 1 seed in 2005 and reached the Sweet 16 in 2006 before losing a heartbreaker to Connecticut in overtime. Washington also reached the regional semifinals in 2010, but could never advance further.

Along the way, Romar won two outright Pac-12 regular season titles – snapping a 56-year drought – and three Pac-12 Tournament titles. But his career with the Huskies will be viewed through a mixed prism of creating a winner in Seattle and then seeing what he built fall off into mediocrity.

Washington owes Romar $3.2 million as part of his contract that ran through the 2019-20 season.

Romar’s missteps included a number of recruiting misses in recent years, either with stars that left for the NBA earlier than expected or complementary players that never developed into being the three- and four-year players needed to stabilize a program.

Washington gained the unwanted notoriety of being the first Pac-12 regular-season champion to miss the NCAA Tournament in 2012. The 2014-15 season appeared to be Romar’s low point, having to dismiss center Robert Upshaw at midseason for violating team rules then seeing all-Pac-12 guard Nigel Williams-Goss transfer to Gonzaga after a 16-15 season.

Last year, Washington’s roster featured seven freshman teamed with senior Andrew Andrews and the Huskies missed the NCAAs by a couple of games. The hope was either Dejounte Murray or Marquese Chriss would return for their sophomore season to play with Fultz, but when both became first-round NBA picks the Huskies were left without a second star this season.

By firing Romar, Washington is also putting at risk losing one of the finest recruiting classes in school history, highlighted by Michael Porter Jr., regarded as one of the top high school seniors in the country, and the son of Washington assistant coach Michael Porter Sr. Along with Porter, Washington has signed guards Jaylen Nowell, Daejon Davis and Blake Harris, all ranked among the Top 100 high school seniors.

Now their commitment to Washington is in question. Depending on how many players the Huskies lose, Washington is looking at a significant rebuild to get back among the elite on the West Coast.