The Univ. of Washington men's basketball team's return to the top 25 after a three-year absence "is a sign of improvement," but 17th-ranked UW is "still waiting for its fans to return in droves to Alaska Airlines Arena," according to Percy Allen of the SEATTLE TIMES. An "intimate but vocal crowd of 6,199 witnessed Sunday’s 49-36 win over then-No. 13 San Diego State." That was a "significant increase from the 2,898 at the season opener, but nowhere near the crowd size Washington attracted to the 10,000-seat arena in its heyday." Coach Lorenzo Romar is "unsure if UW fans are ready to fully embrace this team after two mediocre seasons and a three-year NCAA tournament drought." UW Senior Associate AD Lance Lopes said that school officials "aren’t surprised by the low turnouts this season because the school received tepid response during a summer promotional ticket campaign." Allen notes UW has "sold about 3,300 season tickets, and it’s going to be difficult for the Huskies to draw large crowds this month considering their next four home games are against non-marquee opponents (Eastern Washington, Grambling, Tulane and Stony Brook) during the winter break when students are out of school." Lopes said the Jan. 10 Pac-12 opener against Washington State “is one that we’re going to put a tremendous amount of energy and focus on to get the building full.” UW's "last sellout" was Feb. 18, 2012, against Arizona (SEATTLE TIMES, 12/11).
