Mike Muscala’s arrival in Santiago de Compostela, Spain was a bit unconventional.
Five television cameras awaited the then-22-year-old rookie as he stepped off the plane from the United States and was met with a series of questions and interview requests. English wasn’t an option; his major in Spanish at Bucknell University was all the prep he had. He dove headfirst into the semester abroad he never had the chance to take in undergrad.
Even in the midst of a four-year Division I basketball experience, education had always been at the forefront of Muscala’s mindset. Aside from the Bisons’ recent takedowns of Kansas and Arkansas in the NCAA Tournament during his childhood, the rigorous curriculum was the reason why the Minnesotan picked Bucknell.