The wish of 36,000 University of Tennessee basketball fans came true.

Tuesday’s announcement that men’s coach Cuonzo Martin was bolting Knoxville for the same position at the University of California wasn’t a surprise, but the timing certainly caught a lot of people, Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart included, off guard.

After coaching Bruce Pearl’s remaining players to a pair of NIT bids, Martin’s Vols squad was seemingly headed for the same destination at one point during the hoops season with an underachieving 17-11 campaign and disappointing losses that drew the ire of Tennessee boosters and fans alike.