RIVERSIDE – The approach was sudden but Mike Magpayo admits he could not resist New York City.
Recently announced as the new head men’s basketball coach at Fordham University in the Bronx, Magpayo leaves behind seven-plus years of growth at UC Riverside for a return to the Northeast.
A former assistant coach at Columbia University in New York, the pull of ‘The Big Apple’ proved immense.
“We’re all just wrapping our heads around it,” Magpayo said by phone on Sunday.
“Fordham came at us really fast (and) my mortgage payment is going to go from $2,000 to $12,000, who knows, but I really do love New York City,” he said.
Magpayo went 89-63 and produced winning seasons in four of the five he was head coach at UC Riverside.
“Southern California is home and is my favorite, but New York City is my favorite city in the whole world,” he said. “I would always love to work close to home but New York City is not a bad deal.”
A native of Hacienda Heights, Magpayo became the Highlanders coach in 2020 after two seasons under David Patrick and 10 years as an assistant at the NCAA Division I level.
After leading the Highlanders to two 20-win seasons over the last three and the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) this year for the first time, the 45-year-old is struck by the similarities between the programs at UC Riverside and Fordham.
“I really see Fordham as (UC Riverside) in the Atlantic 10,” he said. “It’s in New York City, in the Bronx, which isn’t exactly Manhattan but it’s a 30-minute train ride into the City which is the same thing as UC Riverside, where you’re selling Southern California, Orange County and L.A., at an academic university, just like Fordham.”
Magpayo was measured but excited when talking about the matchups and the road trips he’ll now be taking.
“It’s a hard, hard job just testing myself and testing the program and the system in the Atlantic 10,” Magpayo said. “We’re going to walk into VCU – that’s going to be scary – and Richmond, George Washington, George Mason, St. Bonaventure – that guy (Mark Schmidt) is an amazing coach – and Dayton, St. Louis, Davidson.
“So the balance feels the same (as the Big West), it’s just at a little higher level and it’s in New York City,” he said.
A graduate of UC Santa Barbara, Magpayo said he received a congratulatory text from another former Gauchos alum after the announcement on March 28.
“It was a 949 area code and I didn’t know it at the time but it was Jim Rome, and he said, ‘Go Gauchos, blah, blah, blah,’” Magpayo said. “Anyway, we go back about 5 years to when I was on his radio show after UC Riverside started 5-and-1 and I was the first Asian coach in Division I and stuff.”
Born in Los Angeles to Filipino parents, Magpayo is the first NCAA Division I head coach of full Asian heritage.
“But what (Rome) text to me was cool. He said, ‘The biggest risk is not taking any risk,’” Magpayo said.
So why make such a dramatic change after your most successful season?
“It is about challenging our brand of basketball and knowing and believing that it’s scale-able, and I really do love New York City,” he said.
HANES’ BIG JUMP
Cal Poly Pomona junior decathlete Gavin Hanes has picked up his first conference award.Hanes (Ramona High) cleared 16 feet, 5 ½ inches to win the pole vault at the Mangrum Invitational at Cal State San Marcos on Saturday, March 28. He was selected as the CCAA’s field athlete of the week.Hanes, the 2022 CIF Southern Section Division 2 pole vault champion, set 11 personal records last season and took third in the decathlon at last year’s CCAA Championships.
TIGERS STILL PERFECT
The Riverside City College men’s tennis team wrapped up a perfect Orange Empire Conference campaign.Led by Michael Chang (Arlington High) and Lance Lao (Claremont High), the Tigers defeated Orange Coast 9-0 on Tuesday, April 1, to finish 8-0 in the OEC, 14-4 overall.The California Community College Athletic Association postseason begins with the OEC Championship Tournament today.
ODDS & ENDS
The California Baptist University baseball team set a school record with 13 runs in the first inning of a 19-3 victory over UNLV at Totman Stadium on Monday, March 31. … Daryl Ruiz (Santiago High) hit a walk-off home run as the Cal State San Bernardino baseball team defeated Cal State Monterey Bay 8-6 at Fiscalini Field on Sunday, March 30. … Mt. San Jacinto College is seeking a coach for its new women’s cross country team, based at its Menifee campus. An application is available on the school’s athletics website. … The Norco College rugby team has abandoned its season due to a shortage of available players.
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