I have a harder time justifying Howland. I know expectations at UCLA are sky high, and I know they've been down the past few seasons, but he's taken them to, what- 4 Final Fours? Wow.
I think a big part of his undoing has been Calipari's "recruiting" at UK. Whereas he was once able to sign a Kevin Love or Russell Westbrook every year, these days, just about all of those types end up in Lexington.
There has been some shadiness at UCLA with the players and recruiting, which IMO is why he's gone. Nothing major, but enough to get fired, apparently.