Former Oregon assistant coach Dan Muscatell made his return to McArthur Court for Friday and Saturday’s Oregon Classic.
Muscatell’s Hornets were a late addition to the tournament after Eastern Washington declined a spot to play at McArthur Court.
“We’re going through a process at Sacramento State that transcends winning and losing,” Muscatell, the team’s head coach, said Saturday. “We have to go through some things, so for our players to get a chance to play in this environment is just absolutely special.”
Sacramento State lost both of its games over the weekend. On Friday, North Carolina State handed the Hornets a 69-42 loss, and the final Saturday against Kansas came as a 70-64 loss.
For the Hornets, which won six games in the past three seasons, the increased offensive production was an improvement.
“To lose like we did (Friday) night, to not shoot the ball very well and to lose by 27, then turn around tonight and we were down at least 18 at one point and to fight back and give ourselves a chance to play for the game, that’s what it’s all about,” Muscatell said.
“Our players are learning an entirely new language of the game of basketball — an entirely new way of playing offensively and defensively — and literally there are times when they have to stop and say ‘Coach, I don’t know that word’ so there’s a lot of learning going on. It’s a steep curve.”
Assisting Muscatell with that curve are three former Oregon players. Lindsey Dion, Karen Piers and Shaquala Williams made the return trip to Eugene as Hornet assistant coaches and received a warm welcome from the fans.
“The return to Mac Court was wonderful,” Muscatell said. “The reception that we received from the fans was tremendous and we can’t thank them enough.”
The players all played for Muscatell while he was an assistant at Oregon, giving Sacramento State’s entire coaching staff a very Duck-like feel.
“I got instructed by the very best — coach (Fred Litzenberger) and Muscatell and coach (Jody) Runge,” Dion said. “We were very well-coached and a very disciplined basketball team, and that’s what we’ve taken to Sac State.”
Even though Oregon and Sacramento State didn’t face each other in the Oregon Classic, the return of former teammates and a former coach was an added enjoyment to Thanksgiving weekend for the players and Oregon head coach Bev Smith.
“It was nice to see them, kind of a different setting,” senior Cathrine Kraayeveld said. “They’re doing a great job. It will take them a couple years, but (Muscatell)’s going to do a great job with that program. It’s fun to see old teammates out there coaching.”
All the current Ducks — minus five freshmen — spent at least a season with Muscatell as a coach and a few games with Williams, and Kraayeveld played with both Dion and Williams.
While Smith’s ties to the returning Ducks aren’t as strong — Muscatell was one of her assistants and Williams played a little more than a season for Smith — she recognized the importance of their appearance.
“It’s nice to see that they’re still involved in basketball,” Smith said. “It was good to see Lindsey Dion back because she’s made a lot of ‘herstory’ here. It was good to see that Dan’s pacing the sidelines and doing those things we coaches like to do.”
As for Muscatell and his Hornet assistants, some things come with the territory and some are new. Like the team, the four coaches are learning every day.
“Everything is new,” Muscatell said about the head coaching experience. “Everyday you wake up and go hard, but it’s a tremendous amount of fun.”