Mike Magpayo, who guided the UC Riverside’s men’s basketball program the last five years, is leaving to take the head coaching position at Fordham University, the school announced Sunday on its website. With the Highlanders, Magpayo’s teams went 89-63 (.586) with a 55-32 (.632) mark in Big Wes t Conference play. He led UCR to two 20-win seasons, including 21-13 this year when the Highlanders went 14-6 in BWC (tied for third), and played in the National Invitation post-season tournament (NIT) for the first time in school history. “What an exciting time to bring my wife, whom I met in New York City 12 years ago, and family back to the greatest city in the World at one of the premier universities in the country, Fordham University,” Magpayo said in the post on the Fordham website. “The excitement for this thrilling opportunity to lead Fordham Basketball is through the roof. I believe there is great potential in this program and I intend to maximize all of it going forward. The combination of New York City attitude and academic excellence will be on full display when talking about Fordham Basketball going forward.” Magpayo was named the first Big West Coach of the Year in UC Riverside history in 2022-23 after leading UCR to a program-record 22 wins – including 10 in Big West play. Magpayo was a finalist for the 2023 Hugh Durham Award, presented by CollegeInsider to the top mid-major head coach in Division I men’s college basketball. “I would like to thank Coach Mike Magpayo for five outstanding seasons leading Men’s Basketball to levels it had not seen before,” UCR Director of Athletics Wesley Mallette said in a social media post. “I cannot thank Mike enough for the positive impact he and his staff have made on our entire Athletics department and leading what has been an amazing turnaround for UCR Athletics. We want to wish Mike and his beautiful family nothing but the best as he takes the next step in his career.” Magpayo was an assistant coach with the Highlanders from 2017-20 before being promoted to associate head coach in 2019-20. In his first season as head coach, Magpayo led UCR to a win over Washington which marked a number of firsts for him, including his first win over a signature Power-5 opponent. It was his first win as a head coach, his first game coached on the sideline, and further, the first win for a team coached by a Division I head coach of Asian American descent. Magpayo was named the 2021 Joe B. Hall Award recipient, given annually to the top first-year head coach in Division I college basketball. “Mike Magpayo is one of the top coaches in college basketball and we’re excited that he will be joining us at Fordham,” said Fordham Director of Athletics Charles Guthrie. “Mike has a passion for nurturing student-athletes and his data-driven analytics makes him the perfect fit for Fordham. His strategic approach to coaching and recruiting has been proven to be successful. We can’t wait for Mike and his family to get to Rose Hill.” Magpayo, a native of Hacienda Heights, served as director of operations, assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Columbia University during the most successful four-year run in school history from 2010-14. He was a member of head coach Kyle Smith’s (currently the head coach at Stanford) staff, along with Todd Golden (currently head coach at Florida), Kevin Hovde (currently head coach at Columbia), and Carlin Hartman (currently associate head coach at Florida). A 2001 graduate of UC Santa Barbara where he earned a degree in business economics, Magpayo was a Southern California High School basketball coach from 2001-2010 before starting his college coaching career. “We’re delighted to welcome Coach Magpayo to Fordham. In his five years at UC Riverside, he transformed the Highlanders, building a record of steady achievement on and off the court,” said Tania Tetlow, president of Fordham. “He brings to the table high standards and a winning culture—he was a successful CEO before coming to coaching—with a genuine care for his players and their families. It’s a very Fordham combination of traits. We welcome Mike and his wife to the Ramily.” He will officially be introduced at a press conference at the Rose Hill campus in the Bronx on Wednesday. ...read more read less