LACEY, Wash. — Saint Martin's University Athletics today announced a transition in Men's Basketball coaching leadership, with
Tyler Velasquez promoted from associate head coach after
Aaron Landon's departure to Sonoma State.
The transition in leadership comes on the heels of historic success this past season, as the Saints coaching staff won GNAC Regular Season and Tournament championships, becoming the first staff in GNAC history to win three outright championships.
"We are thrilled to name Tyler as the next head coach of Saint Martin's Men's Basketball," Saint Martin's Director of Athletics Theresa Hanson said. "Over the past seven seasons as associate head coach, he has been instrumental in building the culture and success of his program and has earned the trust and respect of our student-athletes, staff and community. Coach Velasquez's leadership, player development and commitment to excellence make him the right person to lead us forward."
"We also want to express our deep gratitude to Coach
Aaron Landon for his seven years of dedication to Saints Men's Basketball. He has built a solid foundation both on and off the court that has shaped countless lives, and his impact will be felt for years to come. We wish him and his family all the best in this next chapter."
"I have such deep gratitude in my heart for Saint Martin's and all the people that have made these years so special," Landon said. "There's far too many people to list, but I want to acknowledge the incredible group of players that have come through this program during my tenure. They have brought so much joy to my life and inspired me in ways I can't begin to articulate. Thank you so much to everybody at Saint Martin's for giving me and my family this opportunity, this will always be home for us."
Landon and Velasquez began their tenures at Saint Martin's during the 2019-20 season — following nine combined wins in their first two seasons during the COVID-19 pandemic, the staff pioneered one of the most successful five-year periods in program history, accumulating 109 victories and a .720 winning percentage during that streak. The Saints captured three GNAC regular season championships, one GNAC Tournament Championship, two NCAA Tournament appearances, one GNAC Player of the Year, three All-Region selections, and 18 All-GNAC selections.
During the 2025-26 season under the Saints coaching staff of
Aaron Landon,
Tyler Velasquez, and
Wesley Reynolds, the Saints tied a single-season program record with 26 wins. Saint Martin's finished 18th in the final NABC Coaches Poll, marking 41 of the last 64 polls in which the Saints received a top-25 ranking. During the 2023-24 season, the Saints escalated all the way to a No. 1 ranking, marking the first time in program history. Following the team's 2021-22 GNAC Championship, Velasquez was promoted to associate head coach in October of 2022. Most recently in the 2024-25 season, Velasquez stepped into the role of acting head coach while
Aaron Landon was on medical leave — that season, he led the Saints to 19 victories, the sixth-most in a season in program history.
Velasquez joined Saint Martin's alongside Landon ahead of the 2019-20 season after serving two seasons as Landon's assistant coach at South Puget Sound Community College, helping lead the Clippers to a 48-13 record and consecutive NWAC West Region Championships. Prior to his coaching experience at SPSCC, he worked for two seasons as a video analyst for the Portland Trail blazers. Before coaching, Velasquez had a successful collegiate playing career at Cabrillo College (CA), where he won two conference championships and was named conference MVP — he also played for Concordia University for two seasons, where he was an all-conference point guard and led the team to a conference championship and a single-season program record for wins.
"I am honored to be chosen as the next leader of the Saint Martin's men's basketball program. I want to thank Theresa Hanson and President Brownsberger for believing in me and trusting me to continue running a program that has such a strong history and culture," Velasquez said.
"Aaron and I have a unique relationship, and him leaving the program stirs up a lot of emotions," Velasquez said. "As an assistant coach he recruited me to Concordia University back in 2012, he gave me my first coaching opportunity at South Puget Sound Community College, he was the photographer behind the scenes when I proposed to my wife, he was in my wedding and he has been able to see me and my wife have our first child. Our relationship goes far beyond basketball, but the game is what brought us together to create a ton of amazing memories, and Saint Martin's is the place where we both have been fortunate enough to make those memories."
"Watching Coach Velasquez take over this program is one of the greatest highlights in my career," Landon said. "I haven't looked at Tyler as an 'assistant coach' in a long time. We've partnered and collaborated as competitors that love to compete and believed in what we were doing together. All our players know we've co-coached this program for several years, and I couldn't be prouder of what we've accomplished. Like many of our players, I feel like Coach Velasquez made me better. He's perfect for this job and understands Saint Martin's, the future is bright."
