Winston Gandy, who was announced as the new GCU women’s basketball coach, arrives on campus Monday in Phoenix, replacing Molly Miller. (Photo by Samuel Nute/Cronkite News)
PHOENIX – Receiving high praise from one of the best in the business is always an honor. When the words come from a coach with 644 career wins and three NCAA championships, they carry even more weight.
And South Carolina coach Dawn Staley believes Grand Canyon’s women’s basketball program will be just fine in the hands of her assistant coach Winston Gandy, who GCU introduced to the media Monday even as the Gamecocks are preparing to play in the Women’s NCAA Basketball Sweet 16.
For that reason alone, Lopes fans have reason for optimism following the departure of Molly Miller, who accepted the Arizona State women’s job after leading Grand Canyon to its first Women’s NCAA March Madness berth.
“Winston is one of the hardest workers and best recruiters in our sport, and he’s a true student of the game,” Staley said in a statement to GCU. “I have no doubt he’ll do a fantastic job at GCU, and I can’t wait to watch him thrive as a head coach.”
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 accompanied by the Lopes pep band. Fans chanted “Let’s go Lopes” and applauded Gandy’s entrance.
“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?”
The hiring comes just days after Miller moved on to Arizona State following five seasons at GCU, where she amassed a 117-38 record. This season included a program-best 32 wins, including a stretch of 30 straight victories, and the program’s first bid in the NCAA Division I Women’s Tournament.
Phoenix sports legend Jerry Colangelo, special assistant to the GCU president, speaks at a press conference introducing new women’s basketball coach Winston Gandy Monday. (Photo by Samuel Nute/Cronkite News)
However, GCU president Brian Mueller said Miller had taken interviews with other programs in years past, so the school was not caught off guard by her decision. The timing of Gandy’s hiring suggests GCU was ready to move quickly. And he believes that Gandy can continue the program’s momentum.
“We wanted someone who wanted to be here, and when you have somebody who’s been at the level he’s been at and say, ‘This is the job I wanted,’ you know that he sees and appreciates what the potential of this is,” Mueller said.
Gandy’s rise to become a head-coaching candidate soared after South Carolina’s victory over the University of Iowa and Caitlin Clark in the 2024 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship game.
Staley credited Gandy in her postgame comments after that victory.
“(Gandy) had the Iowa scout(ing report),” Staley told ESPN after the game. “Trust me, he was the difference maker. He explained it in a way that our kids could lock in and execute. They weren’t going to be denied.”
Gandy joins an athletic program that is built around its basketball teams, unlike many Division I schools that put their emphasis on football. It means that the school’s NIL money is earmarked for basketball and other sports rather than concentrated on football, which is why Mueller does not envision the school adding a football program anytime soon.
And it is something Mueller believes made the GCU job attractive.
“Now with the new rules, when 80% of the NIL money goes to football, there’s not a lot left for the other sports,” Mueller said. “So if you’re a basketball person that doesn’t have football, (it) puts you in a position from a resource standpoint that other so-called mid-majors aren’t going to have.”
Those resources can be used for recruiting, which was a big point of emphasis in the school’s head coaching search as the program prepares to move from the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) to the Mountain West Conference as early as the second quarter of 2025.
After working as the director of recruiting operations at the University of Maryland, Gandy spent time as a player development coach for the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2017, when John Wall and Bradley Beal starred in the backcourt.
A sign welcomes GCU women’s basketball coach Winston Gandy, whom South Carolina coach Dawn Staley called one of the hardest workers and best recruiters in our sport. (Photo by Samuel Nute/Cronkite News)
His recruiting background, along with his coaching pedigree, should benefit Grand Canyon’s program. Gandy understands the importance of bringing in talent, but also the value of growing the program’s brand.
“The exposure piece starts with scheduling,” he said. “You’ve got to schedule prominent opponents to get your brand out there, to get exposure. Recruiting, you’ve got to start getting top 100 kids and … that’s how the ball starts rolling.”
Gandy’s recruiting background caught the attention of GCU Vice President of Athletics Jamie Boggs, who knew that a move to a new conference could help attract Gandy. And she wants Gandy to approach recruiting the way the school approached his recruitment as the Lopes transition to the Mountain West.
“We want to be really aggressive in recruiting,” Boggs said. “We want to be really aggressive in scheduling. We wanted someone that has been at nationally prominent universities and athletic programs, and we want that to be a part of GCU.”
If the Lopes are to rise to national prominence, it has to begin with dominating their own conference as Miller’s team dominated the WAC this season.
Despite a lack of head-coaching experience, Gandy’s resume and pedigree stand out. His expectations align with the progression of the program over the last several seasons. And the style of play he promises is bound to be attractive to GCU fans in the wake of Miller’s departure.
“I would say, first and foremost, a pro-style offense and defense as well, up-tempo, hopefully, a lot of scoring,” Gandy said. “Hopefully (the fans) take away that these players know how to play the game.”
