Luke Haupt, a two-time All-CIF basketball player at St. Augustine High School and star at Point Loma Nazarene University, will play his final season of college basketball at the University of New Mexico.
Haupt’s father, St. Augustine coach Mike Haupt, confirmed the move Saturday.
The 6-foot-7 Haupt spent the last five seasons at PLNU, taking a medical redshirt during the 2023-24 season after suffering a knee injury.
Haupt returned in a big way last season, averaging 13.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. Coach Justin Downer called him the Sea Lions’ best er.
“That kind of sets the table for the rest of his game,” Downer said in November. “Everyone is so worried about him as a er (that) it helps him as a scorer. He can with both hands. He can finish with both hands, so you can’t shade him to one side. And then his size, he has the ability to over defenses. We’re letting him bring the ball up the court. He’s 6-6 and can with either hand to the corners, so that puts a lot of pressure on defenses.”
At New Mexico, Haupt will play for coach Eric Olen, who last month led UC San Diego to its first-ever NCAA Tournament.
Olen’s first Lobos team will have a San Diego flavor. Former UCSD defensive star Chris Howell has committed to the Lobos. Carlsbad High School star Jake Hall, the 2023-24 CIF Player of the Year, switched his commitment from UCSD to New Mexico after Olen took the UNM job.
Kevin Patton Jr., a Murrieta native who played his freshman season at USD before transferring to USC, has also ed the Lobos’ roster. Patton is ed by his younger brother, Kallai, who is following him from Los Angeles to Albuquerque.
Olen’s staff includes three coaches — Mikey Howell, Sam Stapleton and Tom Tankelewicz — who worked under him at UCSD.
Haupt, who has an undergraduate degree in business and a master’s degree in business management, lost most of his freshman season to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He averaged 9.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in 2022 despite missing 12 games with an injury.
An All-PacWest selection in 2023, he started all 29 games and averaged 11.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists.
Haupt played 94 games at PLNU, making 88 starts. He scored 1,082 career points, averaging 11.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.4 blocked shots.
