By SuperWest Sports Staff
March 30, 2024
In this series of updates on the history of SuperWest men’s ho0ps program, we provide a brief coaching summary, and a list of the current coaches, along with postseason results, conference titles, award winners, and all-time coaching records.
The Huskies began playing varsity collegiate basketball in 1908 under head coach David Hall.
Legendary coach Hec Edmundson, the namesake of Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion, put Washington on the map with five Conference championships.
He is credited with creating the Fast-break offense, which he attributed to his background as a track athlete and coach.
From 1920 to 1947, Edmundson compiled a phenomenal record of 488-195, including a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 1943.
It was the first of 17 appearances to date. One of the more memorable of those came in 1953, when the Huskies were favored to win the NCAA title.
UW made it to the Final Four that year under head coach “Tippy” Dye and center Bob Houbregs, the Helms Foundation National Player of the Year.
The next coach to have a giant impact at Washington was Marv Harshman, who—ironically enough—came to Seattle from Washington State.
He was named Conference Coach of the Year twice and the NABC National Coach of the Year in 1984.
Harshman compiled a record of 246-146, winning two Conference titles, and leading the Huskies to three NCAA Tournament appearances.
He was also a member of the founding Class of the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.
Lorenzo Romar assumed the reins of the UW men’s basketball program in 2002, guiding the Huskies to two Conference Championships.
Romar’s teams made six NCAA Tournament appearances, the most by any Washington coach, including three Sweet 16s. In 2005, his Huskies earned the program’s first-ever No. 1 seed.
Mike Hopkins was hired in 2017 after a long stint as an assistant under Jim Boeheim at Syracuse, signing a six-year deal worth 12.3 million.
Hopkins made an immediate impact, winning the Pac-12 Coach of the Year award in each of his first two seasons, and a Conference title in 2018-19.
However, following those remarkable seasons, he compiled a disappointing 70-84 record, including a 16-16 mark in 2022-23, and a 17-15 season in 2023-24.
He finished with an overall record of 118–106.
Hopkins was fired on March 8, 2024, but was allowed to finish the season and coach in the Pac-12 Tournament, losing in the First Round.
Former Utah State coach Danny Sprinkle was hired to replace him on March 25. Sprinkle coached Montana State for four seasons, taking the Bobcats to the NCAA Tournament two straight seasons.
Sprinkle led the Aggies to a 28-7 record in 2023-24, winning the regular season Mountain West Conference Championship and making a Second-Round appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
University of Washington (Seattle, WA)
Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion, aka Hec Ed
Current Coaching Staff
Assistants: TBA
Postseason Results
Final Four Appearances: 1 (1953)
Sweet 16 Appearances: 7 (1951, 1953, 1984, 1998, 2005, 2006, 2010)
NCAA Tournament Appearances: 17 (1943, 1948, 1951, 1953, 1976, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2019)
NCAA Tournament Overall Record: 19-18
NIT Championships: 0
NIT Appearances: 9 (1980, 1982, 1987, 1996, 1997, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2018)
NIT Overall Record: 8-9
CBI Appearances: 1 (2008)
CBI Overall Record: 0-1
Conference Titles (PCC through Pac-12)
Pac-12 Tournament Championships: 3 (2005, 2010, 2011)
Annual Award Winners
John R. Wooden Award: 0
Oscar Robertson Trophy: 0
AP All-Americans: 5 (Markelle Fultz-2017; Brandon Roy-2006; Nate Robinson-2005; Bob Houbregs-1952 & 1953)
Pac-12 Player of the Year: 3 (Jaylen Nowell-2019; Brandon Roy-2006; Christian Welp-1986)
Washington Head Coaching Records
| Coach | Tenure | Record | Conf Titles | NCAA Trips | NCAA Titles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Danny Sprinkle | 2024-present | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Hopkins | 2017-2024 | 118-106 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Lorenzo Romar | 2002-2017 | 298-196 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| Bob Bender | 1993-2002 | 116-142 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Lynn Nance | 1989-1993 | 50-62 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Andy Russo | 1985-1989 | 61-62 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Marv Harshman | 1971-1985 | 246-146 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Tex Winter | 1968-1971 | 45-35 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mac Duckworth | 1963-1968 | 53-74 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Grayson | 1959-1963 | 57-49 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tippy Dye | 1950-1959 | 156-91 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Arthur McLarney | 1947-1950 | 53-36 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Hec Edmundson | 1920-1947 | 488-195 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Stub Allison | 1919-1920 | 7-8 | 0 | — | — |
| Claude Hunt | 1917-1919 | 8-19 | 0 | — | — |
| John Davidson | 1915-1917 | 15-15 | 0 | — | — |
| Anthony Savage | 1913-1915 | 24-4 | — | — | — |
| Oscar Olson | 1911-1913 | 26-9 | — | — | — |
| Warner Williams | 1910-1911 | 11-1 | — | — | — |
| David Hall | 1908-1910 | 19-7 | — | — | — |