Howie Landa is one of the most renowned and highly respected basketball coaches of all time. He won over 600 games in his coaching career, throughout the US and Europe. Mercer County Community College was fortunate and grateful to be the focal point of Coach Landa’s basketball success.
Originally from Philadelphia, Howie had a stellar career as a basketball player at Central High School and then played at Lebanon Valley College in the early 1950s, where he established 16 individual records. In 1953, he was the team's leading scorer, and the Flying Dutchmen won the Middle Atlantic Conference. He then played basketball in the Eastern Pro League and was named All-League in 1957.
Coach Landa came to the college in 1961, when it was still Trenton Junior College. During the 1963-64 season, Howie led the Men’s basketball team on their first trip to Nationals in Hutchinson, KS. In 1968, the Vikings returned to Nationals, this time going as far as the Championship game before losing by two points. Under Coach Landa’s leadership, the 1972-73 team finally brought home the National Title, beating the host team, Hutchinson, in the Championship game and completing a record-breaking 34-3 season. The streak continued with another national title in the 1973-74 season. With their two National Championships, Mercer remains the only East Coast team to win the NJCAA title. Over the course of his 25 plus years of coaching Men’s basketball at MCCC, Coach Landa ultimately recorded 495 wins, including 10 regional championships and 15 district titles.
In addition to coaching Men’s basketball, Howie also coached baseball and Men’s soccer, and served as the Athletic Director for a few years during the 60’s. Most importantly, though, Howie served the college as a professor and mentor to so many students. In recognition of his legendary coaching, Howie was named NJCAA Region XIX Coach of the Year 10 times, and National Coach of the Year three times. In 2012, with deep gratitude for his many contributions to MCCC, the college dedicated and named its basketball court the "Howie Landa Court.”
After his retirement from Mercer, Landa moved to Henderson, Nevada, where he became an assistant coach at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV) under Jerry Tarkanian. From 1990-1994, he was also an assistant coach for UNLV's Women's basketball team. In 1994, Landa coached the Men's team for seven games as interim coach, compiling a record of 5-2.
Howie has been inducted into the Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, the Lebanon Valley College Hall of Fame, the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, and the NJCAA Hall of Fame.
This evening, Howie is represented by his daughters, Robyn and Davida, his grandchildren, Shay and Charley, and his niece, Dr. Darilyn Moyer.
