Texas fires coach Rodney Terry after Longhorns make another quick exit from NCAA Tournament

By AP News Published Mar 23, 2025 01:04 pm

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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The University of Texas fired basketball coach Rodney Terry on Sunday after a disappointing first season in the Southeastern Conference and another quick exit from the NCAA Tournament.

The move comes two years after Terry led Texas to the Elite Eight in the 2022-2023 season when, as an assistant coach, he took over the program at midseason after then-coach Chris Beard was arrested on a felony family violence charge and was fired. The charge against Beard was later dismissed.

Terry’s ability to keep the team together and thrive amid the turmoil saw Texas win the Big 12 Conference Tournament, then make its deepest run in the NCAA Tournament since 2008. He was rewarded with the full-time job and a five-year, $15 million contract.

But duplicating anything close to that success was a struggle, and he was fired with three years left on his deal. Terry was 40-29 in his two full seasons as head coach.

“My philosophy has always been to wait until the end of the season and review every facet of our program before making any final decisions, and we’ve been doing that since our heartbreaking First Four loss in the NCAA Tournament,” athletic director Chris Del Conte said in a statement. “In looking at everything over the past three seasons, our first year in the SEC this past year, and where we’re headed in the future, Coach Terry and I have decided it is in the best interest of The University of Texas to move in a different direction.”

Texas joined the SEC in 2024 and started this season ranked No. 19. But the Longhorns lost their season opener and were unranked by the following week. Conference play started with a 0-3 skid as Texas played three straight opponents ranked in the Top 10.

The Longhorns lost seven of their last nine games in the regular season and went 6-12 in league play despite having the SEC scoring leading Tre Johnson, who was named conference freshman of the year.

Texas still earned a bid to the NCAA Tournament behind two strong victories in the conference tournament but only as an 11-seed, forced to win a play-in game to join the final 64 teams playing for the national championship.

Texas’ season ended when the Longhorns blew a 13-point lead in a 86-80 loss to Xavier and finished 19-16 overall. Texas lost in the second round of the tournament last year.

“It was a dream of mine to be the head coach of the Longhorns, and I’ve been able to live that dream,” Terry said in a statement released by the school. “I’ll forever be a Longhorn.”

Terry struggled to stitch together cohesive rosters in the new era of the open transfer portal and players earning money for their name, image and likeness. While he signed Johnson, who likely will be a high NBA draft pick this summer, other top recruits have not flocked to the Texas campus.

Before his first full season, top recruits Ron Holland and A.J. Johnson both turned pro instead of playing for Texas, and Terry had no top high school players set to join the Longhorns next season.

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By JIM VERTUNO
AP Sports Writer