In an odd turn of events, Raphael Chillious has returned to coach under Lorenzo Romar after a one-year stay at Villanova. He was a UW assistant and a well-regarded recruiter from 2010 to 2012, then helped the Wildcats to a 20-14 record and a ninth seed in the NCAA tourney, where they lost to North Carolina.
“He has an unbelievable reputation as a basketball coach and recruiter around the country,” Romar said. “He is an attractor with great people skills.
“I’m excited to have Chills back. He is very familiar with our program. The fact that he was here with us once and then went away, he has an advantage this time around in that he can make an impact from day one.”
Chillious recently applied for the head-coaching vacancy at Loyola-Maryland in his home state, and came in second to six-year Loyola assistant G.G. Smith, son of Tubby Smith, head coach at Texas Tech.
The Huskies recently hired former Iowa State associate head coach T.J. Otzelberger.
“We will have a staff that has great energy and that will do a great job of working together,” Romar said. “I believe that our coaches will complement each other at a high level.”
Chillious worked at Villanova under head coach Brad Wright for the single season, which included a 73-64 win over eventual national champion Louisville.
“It was a different perspective playing, coaching and recruiting in the Big East. It’s very different from the Pac-12,” Chillous said. “That has given me more tools in my coaching tool box.
“It was hard leaving those guys last year, but now I’m back.”
Wilcox has surgery
Husky junior guard and leading scorer C.J. Wilcox underwent successful surgery Friday to stabilize a stress fracture on fifth metatarsal bone in his left foot. The injury limited his effectiveness in the second half of the season. He is expected to make a full recovery before the start of next season.