Chuck Landon: Nobody was happier than MU's D'Antoni

• Danny D’Antoni is a happy guy by nature.

But he was even happier than usual on Saturday night. And it wasn’t just because Marshall Herd-handled Georgia State, 103-65. Instead, it was a combination of events.

It also was the crowd of 5,711 loud fans, the good turnout of former players on “Alumni Night,” the chance to play everybody on the roster and the way the Herd bounced back from a disappointing 86-82 loss to UL-Monroe on Thursday.

All that combined made D’Antoni a happy camper.

“I loved the crowd,” said MU’s veteran coach. “I loved that we got our (former) players back. We got a pretty good number. We want to keep growing it (the annual alumni players reunion).

“It was my goal or dream to come back and get that same atmosphere I had when I was with Doc Hagley and half of Huntington. It was just a good family atmosphere. And to get the players back to recreate that and get the fan base to appreciate the players and the players appreciating the fan base.

“It takes both. Them coming back — you show your appreciation for all the work they did. And them coming to appreciate what you did for them. That’s kind of the way I wanted it and it was a great game to do that with because there were a lot of highlights out there.”

Indeed, there were.

But what was the biggest highlight of all for D’Antoni?

“Everybody got to play,” he said without pause. “That’s a hardest thing a coach does — give minutes because every one of them came here with a dream of being a starter and being on the floor.

“But this team ... sometimes character is built a lot more with those guys coming off the bench. It shows their character. And this team has it. I appreciate that. I got a chance to play them and get them into the game. All of it worked out good.

“We had the energy we’d been missing a little bit. We can’t let up. We have to play like a champion every practice, every game regardless what happens.”

That’s how D’Antoni played and, now, it’s how he coaches.

And guess what?

Nobody is having more fun than Danny.

• Did Auburn star center Johni Broome look vaguely familiar to West Virginia University basketball fans on Saturday?

There’s a reason for that.

It’s because the SEC/Big 12 Challenge wasn’t Broome’s first game against the Mountaineers. Actually, the 6-foot-10, 235-pound sophomore played against WVU in first-round play of the 2021 NCAA Tournament in Indianapolis.

The difference, however, is Broome was playing for Morehead State in those days. In fact, he was the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year.

• Don’t be surprised if James Okonkwo plays significant minutes for WVU on Tuesday night.

In fact, look for the 6-8, 240-pound sophomore to play power forward while Jimmy Bell Jr. mans the center position at 9 p.m. in Fort Worth, Texas. That’s exactly what happened during the Mountaineers’ 80-77 victory over Auburn Saturday in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge.

That’s how much and how rapidly the native of Maidenhead, England, has improved.

“James keeps getting better and better,” said veteran WVU coach Bob Huggins. “At Texas Tech, I think it opened a lot of eyes. Most importantly, it opened James’ eyes — that James could be a factor.”

Look for Okonkwo to improve by leaps and rebounds.