India, Oct. 8 -- With the new college basketball season less than a month away, Oregon has been hit by a major coaching change. Dana Altman has announced his retirement after 16 seasons at the helm, bringing an unexpected end to his tenure with the Ducks.

The 68-year-old was preparing to enter his 17th season in Eugene when he made the decision to step away on Wednesday.

Altman described the move as only the second truly difficult coaching decision of his career, with the first being his departure from Creighton after 16 seasons.

"I have had to make two really tough decisions in my coaching career," said Altman. "The first was leaving Creighton, a place my family and I dearly loved, to come to Oregon. This is the second," Altman's stat...