FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (May 18, 2020) – Northern Arizona men's basketball assistant coach
Tyler Ojanen was recently named one of the nation's 50 Impactful Low Major Assistant Coaches by Silver Waves Media.
To be considered for the list, a coach must not have been a head coach at the NCAA Division I level among the following conferences: Horizon, Big West, Patriot League, WAC, Ohio Valley, American East, Big Sky, Big South, Atlantic Sun, Northeast, Southland, SWAC and MEAC. To determine the 13 conferences, the conference's RPIs were averaged over the past six seasons.
Ojanen recently completed his first season with the Lumberjacks as part of head coach
Shane Burcar's staff. Ojanen arrived in Flagstaff following his second stint at Saint Mary's College.
"Coach Ojanen is such a huge part of our success," Burcar said. "He is a loyal assistant who is a grinder. He has a great eye for identifying winners who will help NAU Basketball contend for championships in the Big Sky Conference."
In his first season at NAU, Ojanen worked primarily with the post players and coached
Brooks DeBisschop to all-conference honors. Under Ojanen's guidance, DeBisschop capped his collegiate career averaging career-highs across the board including 12.0 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. DeBisschop earned All-Big Sky Third Team honors – his first career all-conference recognition – and developed into one of the Big Sky's most well-rounded big men.
Ojanen got his start at Saint Mary's College under Randy Bennett where he spent five seasons from 2008-13. In his five years with the Gaels, Saint Mary's College won three West Coast Conference titles and made four NCAA Tournament appearances capped by a run to the Sweet 16 in 2010.
After one season at Cal State East Bay, Ojanen moved on to San Jose State where he helped the Spartans improve drastically throughout his three seasons from 2014-17. After the Spartans won just two games during his first season, they won 14 in his final season, including their highest conference win total (7) in over a decade.
Ojanen, a 2004 graduate of California Baptist, was a two-year starting guard for the Lancers. He still holds school records for career (.857) and single season (.867) free throw percentage in addition to ranking eighth all-time with 4.46 assists per game. A 2003 Academic All-American, Ojanen's collegiate career began at Phoenix College where he was a two-year starter.
