David Patrick, who had been the head coach at UC Riverside for the past two seasons, has resigned from that position to become associate head coach for Eric Musselman at Arkansas. Patrick was 27-38 at the helm at UCR, improving the Highlanders from 10-23 in his first season to 17-15 this past year.
While Patrick is upgrading in terms of both basketball (Big West to SEC) and salary (he should make more at Arkansas), it is always interesting when a mid-major head coach leaves for an assistant gig when their job does not appear to be in danger. UCR was poised to make a move in the new-look Big West, as the team should return five of their top six scorers next season.
Associate head coach Mike Magpayo has been tabbed as Patrick’s replacement moving forward. The timing was difficult for the school, as AD Tamica Smith Jones was forced to a hire a new head basketball coach in July and in the midst of a global pandemic that saw the coaching carousel far less active than usual. Magpayo, a California-native who came to UCR two years ago from San Francisco, should allow the program to keep momentum into next season.
“I am honored, humbled, and absolutely thrilled for the opportunity to lead our University of California Riverside Men’s Basketball program into the future,” Magpayo said in a statement on Wednesday. “I want to thank AD Tamica Smith Jones and Chancellor Kim Wilcox for this incredible opportunity. Most of all, I am eternally grateful to Coach David Patrick, a true leader, a role-model like no other, and a friend.”
For Patrick, he joins a Razorback program that won 20 games in 2020-21 –Â Musselman‘s first year at the helm. He is the second former head coach on the staff, joining Corey Williams, who came to Fayetteville last year after six seasons at Stetson. Patrick grew up in Australia but attended high school in Baton Rouge and played college basketball at Louisiana-Monroe, so the move back South will allow him to be closer to his family.
credit to Arkansas Athletics for the image
