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Page 21
Campus Review
February 26, 2013
Campus Review
February 26, 2013
Editor:
John Shiffert
Writers:
Erin Fender
Ciji Fox
Lauren Graves
Samantha Watson
Layout:
Lauren Graves
Photography: Erin Fender
Ciji Fox
Contributing Photographers:
Joseph Echols
Kevin Liles
Corenza Marris
The Bent Tree -
Chamy Tep
Graphic Design: Lauren Graves
Gibbons to Resign as Head
Basketball Coach at Season’s End
by Gid Rowell, Athletics
Head men’s basketball coach Gordon
Gibbons, Clayton State’s leader in victo-
ries and one of the all-time winningest
coaches at the NCAA Division II level,
has announced that he will resign his posi-
tion as the Laker head coach at season’s
end.
“Over the past several weeks, I have had
discussions with administration concern-
ing my decision to step down at the end of
the year,” says Gibbons. “I have made it
clear that I will not be talked out of it.
They asked me to announce it now, and I
have agreed with mixed emotions.
Announcing it now will allow the process
to begin, to bring in the next coach for our
program. I will be pursuing new opportu-
nities when we conclude the season.”
In his 12th season at Clayton State,
Gibbons has a 214-130 record, giving him
more wins and a higher winning percent-
age than any coach in the program’s histo-
ry. In addition to his stellar accomplish-
ments at Clayton State, he also amassed
over 246 wins at Florida Southern, mak-
ing him the only coach in NCAADivision
II history to capture 200 victories at two
different schools with a winning percent-
age of over 70 percent.
Overall, in 22 seasons at the NCAA
Division II level, he is 460-193 for a win-
ning percentage of .704, which ranks
fourth in the nation among the active head
coaches with 15 years of experience.
“Coach Gibbons has been one of the top
collegiate coaches in the country and has
touched the lives of thousands of young
men. He has worked diligently to bring
the Clayton State men’s basketball team
into the national spotlight,” says Clayton
State Athletics Director Carl McAloose.
Gibbons had an instant impact on the
Clayton State program from the moment
he arrived in the spring of 2001, and
through his leadership developed the
men’s basketball program into one of the
nation’s premier NCAA Division II pro-
grams and one of the elite programs of the
Peach Belt Conference.
Under his leadership and since his arrival,
the Lakers are 117-91 in Peach Belt play.
Prior to his arrival, the Lakers’ Peach Belt
mark was 24-40 in four seasons. The
Lakers have captured the second most
PBC wins over the last 11 years in the 14-
Women’s Basketball Moves Up to #1
For the third time in the last three years,
the Clayton State women’s basketball team is
ranked as the #1 team in the country.
The undefeated and Peach Belt
Conference champion Lakers moved up
to #1 in the latest edition of the USA
Today Sports/ESPN Division II Top 25
Coaches Poll released today (Tuesday).
Clayton State (25-0; 18-0 PBC) moved up
to the top spot after defeating Georgia
Southwestern 91-43 and previous top-
ranked team Bentley lost 73-66 to
Stonehill on Saturday. The Lakers are
now the lone undefeated team (women’s
or men’s) at the NCAA Division II level.
The Laker women’s program was also
ranked #1 late in the 2010-11 season
before capturing the NCAA Division II
National Championship that year with a
35-1 record. Clayton State opened the
2011-12 season as the nation’s top-ranked
team.
Clayton State received 30 first place votes
and a total of 797 points in the poll, which
is conducted by 33 NCAA Division II
coaches. Bentley (24-1) dropped to No. 3
in the country and received 733 points,
while Ashland (27-1) moved up to No. 2
with 757 points.
Along with Clayton State, the only other
Peach Belt school in the rankings is USC
Aiken (19-5) at No. 21. Besides the
Lakers, the top squad from Clayton
State’s Southeast Region is Limestone,
which is ranked ninth with a 22-2 record.
Sports...
Coach Gordon Gibbons
Photo Credit: Kevin Liles | kdlphoto.com
Gibbons, cont’d, p. 18
#1, cont’d, p. 18