BRANDON LAIRD NAMED MEN’S BASKETBALL ASSISTANT COACH

5/12/2011

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Former UC Davis player and coach Brandon Laird has moved across the Causeway and been named assistant men’s basketball coach at Sacramento State, it was announced today by head coach Brian Katz.

Laird, who was born and raised in Sacramento and attended El Camino High School, replaces Brady Bergeson as the Hornets’ top assistant. Bergeson was recently named the head coach at Western Oregon.

Laird spent the past two years (2009-11) as an assistant at UC Davis where he worked with the guards and assisted in recruiting, scouting and on-floor coaching. In 2009-10, he helped coach the Aggies to 14 overall wins and eight Big West Conference victories, both high water marks for UC Davis since the program joined the Div. I ranks.

Prior to UC Davis, Laird spent three years as head coach at Menlo College (2006-09). He led the Oaks to 18 victories in 2007-08, which were the most for the program since 1990. That team also won a school-record tying nine games in a row, won the Cal-Pac Conference Tournament and advanced to the NAIA national tournament for the third time in school history. Menlo also finished that season with a school-record 13 conference wins and a No. 29 national ranking.

Prior to becoming head coach, Laird spent three years as an assistant with Menlo (2003-06) where he helped rebuild a program that went 4-22 his first season to 17-11 in his third year. Also during his tenure as assistant, the Oaks defeated a pair of Div. II programs, and his recruiting efforts landed six high school players and four junior college players prior to the 2004-05 season.

His first collegiate coaching experience took place at UC Davis where Laird served on the staff during the 2002-03 season. He spent the previous year (2001-02) as an assistant at his high school alma mater (El Camino).

“Brandon is a very good young coach who is bright and hard working,” Katz said. “He has experience as a head coach and has been an assistant at the Div. I level. He brings many intangibles to the team as well, including a passion to coach, grow, compete and work hard.”

A graduate of UC Davis, Laird played four season with the Aggies (1997-01). During his four-year tenure, he appeared in 85 games and helped the Aggies to a combined record of 93-24, including a 31-2 mark in 1997-98 when they captured the Division II national title. He was the recipient of the Captain’s Award (voted on by teammates) following the 2000-01 season.

Laird graduated from UC Davis in 2001 with a degree in managerial economics and then added a master’s degree in 2005 from the United States Sports Academy.