Coastal Carolina hires Western Carolina coach Justin Gray as men's basketball coach

CONWAY, S.C. (AP) — Coastal Carolina has hired former Western Carolina coach Justin Gray as its men's basketball coach.

The school announced Gray's hiring on Monday. Gray will join the Chanticleers after three seasons with the Catamounts.

Gray takes over the full-time job after Cliff Ellis, who took four schools, including the Chanticleers, to the NCAA Tournament in 49 seasons, stepped down in December. Benny Moss had been the program's interim coach since then.

Coastal Carolina athletic director Matt Hogue said Gray is talented and has a strong connection to the region.

“Just has a clear vision for Chanticleer basketball,” he said in a statement.

Gray led Western Carolina to consecutive winning seasons for the first time in 13 years.

Gray has also served as an assistant coach at Winthrop and the director of basketball development at Wake Forest, his alma mater.

Gray was a three-time all-Atlantic Coast Conference player with the Demon Deacons from 2002-06.

The Chanticleers finished 9-22 and were next-to-last in the Sun Belt Conference at 5-13.

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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball