Canzano: There's no quit in Dana Altman
Oregon coach flips the script -- again.
It was just a few weeks ago that I wondered if Dana Altman might throw in the keys at the end of this basketball season.
The Oregon Ducks had lost five games in a row. The bounce of the early part of the schedule was gone. I requested a 1-on-1 interview with Altman, 66, and was told by an intermediary: “I’ll ask, but imagine he will want to pass right now.”
I didn’t blame him.
Two years ago, Altman sounded miserable after a season-ending loss to Wisconsin in the NIT. He looked at the empty seats in his home arena, missed opportunities late in that loss, and wondered in the post-game news conference if he should be coaching junior college basketball.
“Those guys are dogs,” he said. “They want to be in the gym all the time. I love those guys.”
The following morning, Altman called me and said he wasn’t quitting.
“I was mad at the world,” he said. “It was the end of the season. We gave away the game at the free-throw line. We didn’t execute. I blew off some steam.”
On Saturday, Altman’s team provided a full-circle moment against the same Wisconsin program. The Ducks overcame a 17-point deficit, played relentless defense in the final minutes of regulation, got a clutch three-point basket from Jackson Shelstad, and rode the back of Nate Bittle to beat the No. 11-ranked Badgers in overtime.
Final: Oregon 77, Wisconsin 73.
Quit?!?