GCU hires South Carolina assistant Winston Gandy to replace Molly Miller

Grand Canyon has hired South Carolina assistant Winston Gandy to take over its program after Molly Miller departed for Arizona State.

Gandy had his introductory press conference at Grand Canyon on Monday before returning to South Carolina to help the Gamecocks in their national title defense. He is stepping in for Miller, who went 117-38 in five seasons at Grand Canyon and led the Lopes to an NCAA Tournament berth this year before she was hired by Arizona State.

“I’m beyond honored and absolutely thrilled to be the head coach at Grand Canyon University,” Gandy said in a statement released by the university. “Grand Canyon is a truly special place, and we will continue to show the world exactly what we’re about.”

Gandy is in his second season at South Carolina after spending three seasons as Duke’s associate head coach. He also was Maryland’s director of recruiting operations in 2013-14, and later worked in player development with the Washington Wizards and had a three-season run as an assistant at Rice.

“Over the past two seasons with our program at South Carolina, I’ve seen first-hand his incredible work ethic, recruiting talent and passion for the game,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said in a statement. “Winston is one of the hardest workers and best recruiters in our sport, and he’s a true student of the game. More importantly, he genuinely cares about our players and builds real relationships on and off the court.”

Gandy takes over a Grand Canyon program that just finished a 32-3 season. The Lopes had won 30 consecutive games before their 73-60 loss to Baylor in the first round of the NCAA tourney.

GCU welcomed Gandy Monday in front of a crowd that featured Thunder, the Lopes’ mascot; fans and cheerleaders. The crowd welcomed Gandy and his family by singing the GCU fight song, shouting “Let’s go Lopes” and with a round of applause.

“I’m a firm believer that the people make the place,” Gandy said.. “You look at the strong Christian foundation that this university has; we talk about impacting young women to affect the rest of their lives. I mean, what better place?”