Fordham University Men's Basketball

Troy Hammel, a former assistant coach at UC Riverside, was named to Mike Magpayo's inaugural coaching staff in the Bronx in May of 2025.   "Troy was by my side for five years as we successfully built our last program from the ground up," said Magpayo.  "Troy brings excellent coaching acumen, a competitive spirit, and an ability to build relationships that allows him to connect with today's student-athlete. Troy's Northeast roots being a former captain and renowned player at Merrimack College align with the type of players we want to recruit to Fordham University."   Hammel recently completed his third season as an assistant at UC Riverside, guiding the Highlanders to a 21-13 record, including a 14-6 Big West mark, and the program's first-ever appearance in the NIT.  In his three years as an assistant coach under Magpayo, Hammel helped UCR to a pair of 20-win seasons and a 38-22 effort in Big West play.   Hammel served as a graduate assistant at UC Riverside from 2018-20 before undertaking stints at Colorado Christian University (assistant coach, 2020-21) and Rice (video coordinator, 2021-22).   A native of Valencia, Calif., Hammel played collegiately at Merrimack for his uncle, Bert Hammel. He posted 1,312 points, good enough for 28th on the program's all-time scoring list, and was named a Northeast-10 All-Conference Honorable Mention selection as a senior.  Hammel remains the Warriors' all-time leader in both 3-point field goal percentage (43.2%) and free throw percentage (88.3%).

Leo Stern, who served as an Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach at Central Michigan last year, was named the Fordham Men's Basketball Director of Men's Basketball Sports Performance in June of 2025. "We are extremely fortunate to add a high energy motivator in Leo Stern to lead the Strength and Conditioning program for our Men's Basketball student-athletes," said Magpayo. "Leo will provide elite attention and discipline in both our performance and our nutrition." At Central Michigan in 2024-25, Stern worked directly with the Chippewa men's basketball and men's golf teams. Stern joined the CMU Strength and Conditioning staff after working two years with the men's basketball and men's golf teams at the University of North Alabama in Florence, Ala. Prior to that stint, he spent 11 months as a graduate assistant at Southeast Missouri State in Cape Girardeau, Mo., where he worked directly with the men's and women's basketball teams. He also worked previously at the University of Kentucky as a strength and conditioning intern, serving the football and men's basketball teams. He has also gained experience at College of the Holy Cross, Carthage College, and in Tokyo, Japan. Stern earned his bachelor's degree in exercise sports science from Carthage College in 2021. His certifications include a certified strength and conditioning specialist by the national strength and conditioning association, functional movement screen, precision nutrition, and USA weightlifting.