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Welcome to the new reality for Arizona basketball. Lots of questions, few answers, a ton of uncertainty.
The No. 14 Wildcats on Saturday had a chance to secure the top seed in next month's Pac-12 Tournament. Instead, the Wildcats coughed up a 13-point, second-half lead and fell to the Ducks, dropping to to 22-7 and 12-4 in the Pac-12.
With everything else going on, it seemed secondary.
On Friday night, ESPN.com reported that Sean Miller – in his ninth season as head coach at Arizona – was caught on FBI wiretap discussing a $100,000 payment to star freshman Deandre Ayton. It's not known if Ayton received the payment. His family issued a statement saying it was "outraged and disgusted" by the allegation.
Miller on Saturday issued his own statement through the university saying he believed it was in the "best interest of the team" not to coach against Oregon. He added:
"I continue to fully support the University's efforts to fully investigate this matter and am confident that I will be vindicated. For now, my thoughts are with our team. They are a great group of young men that will support each other and continue their pursuit of winning a Pac-12 championship."
A former head coach at Washington, Romar said both Miller and Director of Athletics Dave Heeke informed him he would coach at Matthew Knight Arena.
"Coach Miller talked to the team,'' said Romar, in his first season as associate head coach. "We talked to the team about the game. It's just a situation that was tough."
Despite the payment allegation, Ayton played.
Throughout the season, the 7-foot-1 freshman has been the Pac-12's most dominant force, a projected top pick in June's NBA draft. If he was bothered by the ESPN report, he didn't show it. Ayton hit his first four shots as Arizona opened a double-digit lead.
"I think they were mad when they came out,'' Oregon coach Dana Altman said. "They were focused, they were energized, they were mad."
In the first half alone, Ayton had 17 points, 11 rebounds and two blocked shots. The big man finished with 28 points and 18 rebounds, but didn't have a field goal over the last 10 minutes, 50 seconds of regulation. He didn't score a point in overtime.
"I think the last 24 hours has been probably difficult for him, but he's handled it like a professional," senior point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright said. "... I can only imagine what he's going through."
Arizona did not make Ayton available to media after the contest.
"He's getting through it," Romar said. "You look at his play tonight, it seemed like he handled it pretty well."
BICKLEY:Arizona scandal a symptom of a broken college system
Since leaving Tucson, Arizona has turned into the poster child of college basketball chaos, a mess that seems to keep growing. Even Romar admitted: "The last couple days have just been like a blur."
First it was Allonzo Trier, declared ineligible on Thursday after a drug test revealed trace amounts of a banned substance, the same substance that kept the standout guard out for the first 19 games of last season. Arizona is appealing the NCAA's decision.
Then it was Miller and something far more serious – an allegation that, if true, has the potential to torpedo the program. In 2008, Indiana and then-coach Kelvin Sampson agreed to part ways in late February because of alleged recruiting violations and Sampson's reaction to them.
Just like Arizona, the Hoosiers were ranked nationally at the time, but their success quickly evaporated. After losing in the NCAA Tournament’s first round, the program bottomed out. Indiana won six, 10 and 12 games over the next three seasons.
It’s unknown what Arizona will face, but recruiting already has taken hits. Not long after the Miller announcement, Shareef O’Neal – a top 30 2018 recruit and son of former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal – tweeted his decommitment from Arizona.
"It's obviously difficult," Jackson-Cartwright said. "I'm not going to sit up here and say it's not. ... Regardless of who's coaching, we have a job as players, and that job is to come out and play extremely hard for the name on the front of our jersey."
When Arizona first got caught up in the FBI investigation – which led to the dismissal of assistant coach Emanuel "Book" Richardson – Miller had support around the sport. That's no longer the case.
Hours before Saturday's contest, ESPN analyst Jay Bilas called the ESPN report a “career-ending” development for Miller. Dick Vitale – perhaps college basketball's most recognizable analyst – called for the coach’s immediate dismissal.
These are appropriate reactions, but a conclusion likely won’t come for months, maybe longer, which puts a lot of people in a tough spot, including those in uniform Saturday night. The Wildcats opened the season as national-title contenders, but they've played all season under the weight of the FBI investigation.
In addition, the school in November suspended assistant coach Mark Phelps five days for NCAA violations.
It will be interesting to see how the Wildcats hold up. Following Saturday's loss, they wrap up the regular season with next week's home games against Stanford and California. From there, it's the Pac-12 Tournament, with or without their head coach.
"We dealt with this the way we dealt with it tonight, and then we'll move on and see what happens," Romar said.
Contact Doug Haller at 602-444-4949 or at doug.haller@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him at Twitter.com/DougHaller.
SEAN MILLER REPORT:Pundits, fans react to latest leak of FBI info in NCAA scandal
SEAN MILLER NEWS:Fire, suspend or defend Sean Miller? Arizona's options after ESPN report
Contact Doug Haller at 602-444-4949 or at doug.haller@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him at Twitter.com/DougHaller.
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