New Mexico
Olen adds three Assistants to New Mexico Basketball Staff – HoopDirt
Story Courtesy Steve Kirkland, New Mexico Athletics
University of New Mexico head coach Eric Olen announced three members of his coaching staff. Tom Tankelewicz, Sam Stapleton and Mikey Howell will all join the Lobo coaching staff as assistant coaches, having all served on Olen’s staff at UC San Diego.
“I’m thrilled to add Tom, Sam and Mikey to our Lobo Family,” said Olen. “They’re talented coaches who have been a huge part of our past success. All three prioritize players and understand how we operate and who we want to recruit.”
Tankelewicz spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach at UC San Diego, helping lead a Triton offense in 2024-25 that led the Big West and ranked in the top 30 nationally in assist/turnover ratio (4th, 1.80) and effective field goal percentage (29th, .555). Last season, he coached Big West Player of the Year Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones to a Division I school-record 670 points and Tyler McGhie to a school-record 117 three-pointers.
Prior to coming to UCSD, Tankelewicz spent the 2021-22 season at Presbyterian, helping lead the Blue Hose to the best non-conference record in school history. He spent five seasons on the staff at UNC Greensboro from 2017-21, as the Spartans had five consecutive 20-win seasons for the first time in program history. UNCG won two SoCon regular season titles, two SoCon Tournament titles, made two NCAA Tournament appearances and two NIT appearances during his time on Wes Miller’s staff.
Tankelewicz played collegiately at Western Carolina, where he earned his undergraduate degree in 2014. He made 179 3-pointers during his career, including leading the SoCon with 80 3-pointers in 2012-13. Following graduation, he played professionally for one season in Kosovo. Tankelewicz earned his master’s degree in 2018 from UNCG.
“Tom will coordinate our offense and is a rising star in the business,” said Olen. “He has a creative mind and an elite work ethic to go along with being a great teacher. His commitment to his craft is something our players will be able to learn from and his selflessness is contagious. We are very lucky to bring Tom to Albuquerque.”
Stapleton spent the past four years at UC San Diego, serving as an assistant coach for two years after serving as the program’s director of recruiting and director of operations. In each of his two seasons as an assistant coach with the Tritons, UCSD reach the postseason, with a CBI appearance in 2024 and the school’s first March Madness berth this past season.
Prior to coming to UCSD, Stapleton was an assistant coach for four seasons at Cal State Dominguez Hills, helping the Toros to four consecutive conference tournament appearances and coaching six all-conference honorees. From 2015-17, he was graduate assistant/video coordinator at Pepperdine, helping the Waves reach the 2016 CBI. Stapleton also has coaching experience at West LA Community College and the LA Rockfish AAU program.
Stapleton played collegiately at Occidental College, where he graduated in 2013. As starting point guard for the Tigers, he finished his senior season ranking third in the conference in assists and fifth in steals. Stapleton earned his graduate degree from Pepperdine in 2017.
“Sam is going to oversee recruiting and roster building,” said Olen. “He is a terrific evaluator and a tireless worker. His ability to identify undervalued prospects and project them into different roles within our structure will help us put together teams that have complementary skillsets. In addition to roster construction, Sam will support the defensive side of the ball where his energy and attention to detail are high level. Lobo fans will love his passion and commitment.”
Howell, who starred at point guard for Olen at UC San Diego, spent the past three seasons on the staff of his alma mater. He was an assistant coach for each of the past two seasons as the Tritons made their first two Division I postseason appearances. Howell joined the staff in 2022-23 as the director of basketball operations.
As a player at UCSD, Howell is the school’s all-time leader in assists with 502 over his career. As a senior in 2020-21, the Tritons’ first season in Division I, he led the Big West and ranked 12th nationally by averaging 6.0 assists per game. In 2019-20, UCSD’s final season in Division II, he earned second-team all-conference honors as he set the school’s single season assist record with 215. He helped the Tritons to a 30-1 record as he was sixth in the nation in assists at 6.9 per game.
“No one has spent more time in our system than Mikey,” said Olen. “He’s been both a player who thrived in our environment and also a coach who helped players do the same thing. He connects with players and relates to their experiences, having recently been in their shoes. Mikey has always had a feel for the game well beyond his years of experience. He supports the offensive side of the ball and excels in guard development. Lobo Nation is going to be excited about what Mikey brings to our team.”
New Mexico
Love 4 Pets with Woody, Zwei, Kenai
Woody is up for adoption with the City of Albuquerque’s Animal Welfare Department. Meet him here!
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — In this Love 4 Pets, we have Woody, Zwei and Kanai, who are all up for adoption at the City of Albuquerque’s shelters.
Woody is looking for a loving home after going through the ringer. He came to Albuquerque Animal Welfare about a month ago after he was hit by a car. He’s healing from some pelvic fractures and is moving slowly so he can hang out in the backyard and go for short walks.
Woody is very smart and can sleep all night. They believe he is about nine years old and is believed to be a Lab mix. He’s very sweet and is house-trained.
Woody is set to be 100% ready soon. You can meet him in the video above or at the Eastside Animal Shelter (details).
We also have Zwei and Kenai.
Zwei:
An Australian Shepherd mix, Zwei is a little tripod who is a great companion, has wonderful manners and loves to lean into you for hugs. She walks beautifully on a leash and doesn’t miss a beat, even with only three legs.
Zwei is currently in foster care. If you are interested in adopting her, contact Albuquerque Animal Welfare to set up a time to visit her.
Kenai:
Kenai is a Labrador retriever mix. He is a friendly, affectionate boy who enjoys being around people and has good manners. He walks well on a leash and is very excited about exploring the world.
Kenai loves attention, toys (especially stuffed animals) and car rides. So, if you’re looking for an adventure buddy, you can meet him at the Westside Animal Shelter (details).
New Mexico
Warm start to the week across New Mexico
Grant’s Monday Night Forecast
A few evaporating rain showers are possible again Tuesday with warmer temperatures. Windier weather later this week will bring a high fire danger back to New Mexico.
It’s been a warm day with a few isolated showers and thunderstorms across central and northern New Mexico. Some of that rain has made it to the ground, while other showers have evaporated before reaching the surface. Temperatures have climbed into the 70s and 80s for most of the state. Showers will fade after sunset, with mostly clear skies overnight and mild temperatures.
Even warmer weather is on the way Tuesday with lighter winds. More areas will reach the 80s by the afternoon. A few spotty showers will develop again, especially near the mountains, with some of that rain evaporating before reaching the ground.
Winds pick up Wednesday afternoon, with gusts between 25 and 45 mph. This will begin another stretch of high fire danger across the state. The strongest winds arrive Thursday, with westerly gusts of 35 to 55 mph. That will expand the fire danger statewide. A dry cold front will move through Thursday as well, but temperatures will only drop slightly, ending up closer to average.
Breezy conditions continue Friday through the weekend as the jet stream pulls more moisture into New Mexico. That will bring increasing chances for rain and thunderstorms this weekend, with a few lingering into early next week.
New Mexico
Landlord AC ordinance, Rio Grande water levels, Spotty rain, New legislative office, New Mexico Motorfest
Monday’s Top Stories
Monday’s Five Facts
[1] ABQ City Councilor aims to bolster protections for renters amid unseasonable warmth – Albuquerque city councilor is looking to make sure city landlords are not only providing cooling systems, but also ensuring they actually work when they’re needed. City Councilor Tammy Fiebelkorn spearheaded an ordinance in December of 2024, requiring all Albuquerque rental properties to have a cooling system. Now, Fiebelkorn is taking it a step further, hoping to establish cooling system performance requirements. The ordinance is expected to be voted on in final action at Monday’s city council meeting.
[2] Rio Grande showing dry spots in Valencia County amid record-low snowpack – Portions of the Rio Grande are now seeing dry spots earlier than expected. Officials say the timing is not normal. In Valencia County, parts of the river are already running dry. Near the river crossing in Los Lunas, the river has open pockets. Further south, it is being reported as dry as well. There is a slight positive outlook for the monsoon season, with forecasters and officials predicting a strong season in the Middle Rio Grande Valley.
[3] Very spotty rainfall, warmer, & mostly calm week – Warmer weather will continue building in across the state throughout the upcoming week. A few isolated rain chances will return Monday in parts of New Mexico, but some of that rain may evaporate before reaching the ground. Temperatures will continue to increase through the middle of the week.
[4] NM representatives celebrate grand opening of new office with open house – A new state legislative office made its debut for representatives Eleanor Chavez and Yanira Gurrola. The new location is just one of the handful of new legislative offices now open across the state. They hosted a grand opening for the building that was open to the public. Representative Gurrola says it’s just one step towards modernizing the state’s legislature. The new office will allow residents to stay more connected to each representative.
[5] New Mexico Motorfest 2026 takes place in celebration of Route 66 Centennial – Another Route 66 celebration took place over the weekend and this one was all about cars. The New Mexico Motorfest happened at the Expo New Mexico racetrack. Over 300 vehicles from classic hot rods to lifted trucks were featured at the event. Some of the proceeds went to New Mexico veterans.
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