Tag: Washington Huskies Basketball

Social media reacts to Washington parting ways with Mike Hopkins

Social media appeared incredibly relieved that the Huskies parted ways with Mike Hopkins on Friday.

The Washington Huskies officially parted ways with men’s basketball coach Mike Hopkins after seven years on Friday afternoon. After wining back-to-back Pac-12 Coach of the Year awards in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons, Hopkins struggled to get back to any sort of success.

While there were some high points, including a victory over No. 2 Kansas, Dominic Green’s buzzer-beating three-pointer to upset No. 9 Arizona, and a victory in the NCAA Tournament over Utah State, Hopkins’ tenure at Washington was hampered by its low points.

He finished his career with a 58-71 record in Pac-12 play, including a last place finish in the 2019-20 season, following that up with an 11th place finish for the 2020-21 campaign. Since 2019 the Huskies have won just one game in the conference tournament and have not seen the postseason.

When the news broke on Friday, fans took to social media to voice their opinions about the long time coach who was coming off an upset victory over the No. 18 Washington State Cougars and had one year remaining on his contract.

Among the first to react to the news was Washington basketball alumni and former Philadelphia 76ers center Spencer Hawes.

Fans also had plenty to say.

Coming off the upset victory over the Cougars, fans who had been expecting this news were already poking fun at their in-state rivals.

Interest around the Washington basketball program has been lacking in recent years and athletic director Troy Dannen seems to understand that.

 

Names of potential replacements have been floated, with Utah State’s Danny Sprinkle being the most popular candidate.

Washington cuts ties with basketball coach Mike Hopkins

The Washington Huskies cut ties with Mike Hopkins after seven years at the helm.

After seven seasons, the Washington Huskies have cut ties with coach Mike Hopkins. He got off to a hot start during his first two seasons, winning Pac-12 Coach of the Year for both the 2017-18 and 2018-19 campaigns and leading the Huskies to a berth in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, earning a victory over Utah State before falling to North Carolina.

“Mike has led the program with great integrity during his seven years at Washington, and remains a highly respected coach and one of the great gentlemen in the game,” athletic director Troy Dannen said. “Everyone at the university is grateful for his service, his commitment to the experience of our student-athletes and his leadership within the department. We wish Mike, Trisha and their children the very best in the future.”

Since the loss to the Tar Heels, Hopkins’ teams have struggled despite pulling in top talent like Keion Brooks Jr., Jaden McDaniels, and Isaiah Stewart. Hopkins will remain with the team through the end of the season, finishing with a 116-104 regular season record.

“I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to serve as the head basketball coach at the University of Washington the last seven years,” Hopkins said in a statement. “Thank you to my players, staff, administration, fans, and alumni that have made this experience special and an awesome place for my family and me. The relationships we’ve made will last a lifetime.”

Among some of the candidates who have been floated as a potential replacement for Hopkins include Utah State’s Danny Sprinkle, Washington State’s Kyle Smith, and Hopkins’ top assistant Will Conroy and Dannen seems to have a good idea of what he’s looking for in Washington’s next head coach.

“As we transition to the Big Ten Conference this August, we do so with tremendous momentum, passionate fans and supporters, as well as a proud basketball tradition,” he said. “I am confident we will identify a phenomenal leader for our men’s basketball program who will embrace our institution’s high expectations for academic, social and competitive success.”

Washington storms into Pullman to upset No. 18 Cougars

The Washington Huskies finished off the regular season with an upset victory over the Washington State Cougars.

Washington State drew their biggest crowd of the season on Thursday night, apparently in hopes of storming the court upon a victory for the No. 18 Cougars, but coach Mike Hopkins and the Washington Huskies had other plans. After the Cougars took a 30-20 lead with 2:15 remaining in the first half, the Huskies went on a 12-0 run to take a 32-30 lead into the locker room.

In his first start since December 17, sophomore guard Koren Johnson led the team with 23 points, combining with senior Keion Brooks Jr. to score Washington’s final 12 points to seal a 74-68 victory for the Huskies. Brooks, the Pac-12’s leading scorer this season also had a big night, finishing just shy of a double-double with 22 points and 9 rebounds.

Thursday’s Apple Cup matchup inside Beasley Coliseum was probably Hopkins’ final regular season contest as Washington’s head coach, but he could have an opportunity to save his job if his team can put together a strong run in Las Vegas during the Pac-12 Tournament and win it, which would secure an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

It appears that is the only avenue remaining for Hopkins to keep his job and even that might not be enough.

The victory moves the Huskies to 17-14 overall and 9-11 in Pac-12 play, which currently has them as the No. 7 seed in the conference tournament. The loss knocks coach Kyle Smith in the Cougars to 23-8 overall and 14-6 in conference play.

Washington basketball’s Isaiah Thomas returns to NBA G-League

The Washington Huskies legend made his return to the ranks of the NBA on Tuesday, signing with the G-League’s Salt Lake City Stars.

Washington Huskies legend Isaiah Thomas has made his way back to the ranks of the NBA, signing with the Utah Jazz’s G-League affiliate, the Salt Lake City Express on Tuesday afternoon. The journeyman has played in 550 games with 10 teams over his 11 seasons in the league, most recently with the Charlotte Hornets and has spent the last two years searching for his next opportunity.

The 34-year-old point guard has averaged 17.7 points and 4.8 assists per game over his career and made a name for himself with the Boston Celtics. Thomas was named to the 2016 and 2017 NBA All-Star teams, as well as the 2017 All-NBA second team.

Now, he will look to make his way back to the Jazz, who are currently sitting in 11th place in the Western Conference and six games out of a playoff spot. If he can make his way back to the NBA, he could provide a scoring boost for coach Will Hardy off the bench.

Over his three years with coach Lorenzo Romar on Montlake, Thomas averaged 16.4 points and 4 assists per game, earning a spot on an All-Pac-12 each season while leading the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament in all three years.

Washington announces plans for high-performance basketball center

The University of Washington unveiled its plans on Wednesday for a new home for all of its basketball training.

On Tuesday, the University of Washington announced its plans to break ground in June on a new high-performance basketball center which is expected to be completed in August 2025.

The project will cost $60 million and appears to be an impressive achievement for athletic director Troy Dannen early on in his tenure, as it will be entirely funded by UW donors, with over $1 million coming from alumni of the basketball program.

“We are thrilled to break ground on this transformational project. Investment in Husky basketball is critical to enabling our future competitive success as we enter the Big Ten, and we are grateful our donors share this belief and stepped forward in such a remarkable way,” Dannen said in a press release. “This facility will provide a dedicated space for both our men’s and women’s programs while enhancing the athletic footprint for all UW student-athletes.”

Many expect Washington’s men’s team to dismiss Mike Hopkins and enter a coaching search in the coming months and upon its completion, the high-performance center could be used as a selling point on the recruiting trail for the team’s next head coach.

Along with two 9,800 square-foot practice courts, the center will include a foyer to display the history of the basketball program and a skywalk for fans to watch practice while taking in a view of Montlake.

Washington basketball routs UCLA 94-77 behind Brooks’ big night

The Washington Huskies blew out the struggling UCLA Bruins inside Alaska Airlines Arena on Thursday night.

Fresh off being named to the Oscar Robertson Trophy watch list, the Pac-12’s leading scorer Keion Brooks Jr. put up 32 points to headline a stellar performance from coach Mike Hopkins’ starting lineup.

Brooks nailed a career-high 6 three-pointers on 7 attempts in an efficient night for the senior, who went 8-14 from the floor and 10-13 from the free throw line in Washington’s 94-77 victory over the UCLA Bruins.

He got a lot of support from another Kentucky transfer, guard Sahvir Wheeler who added 11 points and 11 assists on the night, along with center Braxton Meah who had one of his best games in a Husky uniform. The Fresno State transfer went 8-8 from the field and 3-4 from the free throw line, putting together a final line of 19 points and 8 rebounds.

Portland transfer Moses Wood contributed with 18 points and 5 rebounds on 4-5 shooting from beyond the three-point arc. As a team, the Huskies made an extremely impressive 62.5 percent of their three-point attempts as they moved to 16-13 overall and 8-10 in Pac-12 play with the win.

The loss knocked the Bruins down to an even 14-14 on the season and 9-8 in conference play. The Huskies will have a chance to sweep the Los Angeles schools over the weekend as they will face off with Bronny James and the USC Trojans in front of a sold-out crowd on Saturday afternoon.

Washington falls at No. 4 Arizona 91-75

The Washington Huskies fell behind early and couldn’t recover against the Arizona Wildcats in Tucson.

After blowing a 24-point lead but escaping with a victory against Arizona State on Thursday, coach Mike Hopkins and the Washington Huskies couldn’t find a way to overcome similar odds against the No. 4 Arizona Wildcats.

The Wildcats suffered a 77-74 upset at the hands of the No. 21 Washington State Cougars Thursday, but the projected No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament got back on track with a 91-75 victory over the Huskies. Washington moves to 15-13 on the season and 7-10 in Pac-12 play, while Arizona retained the top spot in the conference as it improved to 21-6 overall and 12-4 in conference play.

Arizona guard Caleb Love paced all scorers with 28 points and senior Oumar Ballo was dominant on the interior throughout the game, recording a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds. The Huskies received a strong contribution off the bench from guards Koren Johnson and Nate Calmese, who added 17 and 15 points respectively, but it wasn’t nearly enough.

Sahvir Wheeler struggled to get going for Washington, as the conference’s assists leader made just 2 of his 13 field goal attempts but could still add 6 assists.

Washington now has three regular-season games remaining before the Pac-12 tournament and will return to Seattle to take on the UCLA Bruins on Thursday.

Social media reacts to Washington basketball’s narrow victory over Arizona State

The Washington Huskies blew a 24 point lead against the Arizona Sun Devils on Thursday, but held on for a narrow victory.

Coach Mike Hopkins and the Washington Huskies held on for dear life on Thursday night inside Desert Financial Arena. The Huskies took a 21 point lead into halftime and were up by as many as 25, but Arizona State outscored Hopkins’ squad 51-30 in the second half to force overtime.

In the extra period, senior Paul Mulcahy converted on an impressive, high-difficulty reverse layup to knot the game at 82, before senior Braxton Meah knocked down a pair of free throws to put the Huskies ahead for good. Pac-12 scoring leader Keion Brooks Jr. led the way once again with 21 points as Washington moved to 15-12 overall and 7-9 in Pac-12 play with the win.

A loss probably would have been the final nail in the coffin for Hopkins, who is already on the hot seat following four straight seasons of subpar play. The Huskies have not made the NCAA Tournament since the 2018-19 season and unless they can find a way to win out and win the Pac-12 Tournament, they will probably come up short once again.

As it always does, social media had a lot to say about Washington’s nail biter and the majority of the heat was directed at Hopkins.

Late basket pushes California over Washington 82-80

The Washington Huskies fell at home to the California Golden Bears 82-80 on Saturday night.

With the Washington Huskies already on the outside looking in of the NCAA Tournament, Saturday’s loss to the California Golden Bears won’t do them any favors. With 4 seconds to go, Cal’s Jalen Celestine buried a game-winning three-pointer to give the Golden Bears an 82-80 lead.

Coach Mike Hopkins opted not to call timeout following the go-ahead score and guard Sahvir Wheeler missed a game-tying layup, knocking Washington down to 10th place in the Pac-12 with the loss. The Huskies fell to 14-12 overall and 6-9 in conference play, while the Golden Bears rose to 11-15 on the season and 7-8 in Pac-12 play.

Cal junior Jaylon Tyson paced all scorers with 28 points, while the Pac-12’s leading scorer, senior Keion Brooks Jr. led the way for the Huskies with 26. After dropping a career-high 30 against the Stanford Cardinal on Thursday night, sophomore Koren Johnson contributed 16 inside Alaska Airlines Arena.

After hitting a buzzer beating, game-winning three-pointer against the Golden Bears in Berkley in January, senior Moses Wood added 11 points while hitting 3 of his 6 three-point attempts.

The Huskies will travel to the Grand Canyon State next weekend for a matchup with the Arizona State Sun Devils on Thursday, before traveling to Tucson to take on the No. 3 Arizona Wildcats.

Koren Johnson shines in Washington’s rout of Stanford

In a big win over the Stanford Cardinal, local product Koren Johnson stole the show for the Huskies.

After a back and forth first half, momentum took a major swing in the Washington Huskies’ direction when sophomore guard Koren Johnson hit a buzzer beating three-pointer just before halftime to give coach Mike Hopkins’ team a 40-38 lead over the Stanford Cardinal. The buzzer beater capped off a 17 point first half for the product of Garfield High School in Seattle as the Huskies cruised to an 85-65 victory.

Johnson didn’t slow down in the second half, setting a new career-high with 30 points while shooting 12/18 from the floor and 6/10 from behind the three-point line. He also added 4 assists and 3 steals, but wasn’t the only member of Hopkins’ squad who impressed on Thursday.

The Pac-12’s leading scorer Keion Brooks Jr. put together 20 points and 5 rebounds, including a handful of highlight reel dunks, while center Braxton Meah also contributed with 13 rebounds, one short of his career-high which he set in January against Arizona State. The conference’s leader in assists, guard Sahvir Wheeler also turned in an impressive performance, adding 14 points and 8 assists to the box score.

The win moves Washington to 6-8 in conference play and 14-11 on the season. With a matchup against Cal on Saturday, the Huskies have a chance to get back on track with six games remaining in the regular season. If Hopkins’ squad can find a way to get back on track, it may still have a fighting chance of making its way into the NCAA Tournament.