BROOKLYN, N.Y. — LIU is thrilled to announce the addition of Gerald Gillion as associate head coach of the men's basketball program.
 
Gillion assumes his role at LIU following a successful three-year tenure as the head men's basketball coach at Chicago State.
 
With a robust background in collegiate basketball, spanning over 11 years in the NCAA, Gillion arrives poised to enrich the program with his seasoned expertise.
 
"Words can't express how excited I am to work under head coach Rod Strickland at Long Island University," Gillion said. "I am looking forward to mentoring and educating young men through the game of basketball."
 
In his first game as the head coach at Chicago State, the Cougars snapped a 28-game losing streak. Gillion went on to win 31 games in his three years at CSU, which is more than the program had in the prior seven years combined.
 
Gillion also led the Cougars to their first win over a ranked team in the AP Top 25 with a 75-73 victory at Northwestern as well as the program's first postseason victory, a 77-75 win over UC San Diego in the College Basketball Invitational.
 
Following the 2021-22 season, Gillion was named one of 15 finalists for the Joe B. Hall Award. The award is presented annually by CollegeInsider.com to the top first-year coach in Division I college basketball. He was also named ESPN's Coach of the Week following Chicago State's upset win at Northwestern.
 
"We are excited to have Gerald and his family as part of LIU Basketball," head coach Rod Strickland said. I'm really excited about the energy that he brings into the program. His coaching and grassroots experience will boost the future success of our program."
 
Prior to arriving in Chicago, Gillion spent one season at Samford, where he was credited with having the Bulldogs' most talented class in program history. Gillion was an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech from 2017-2019, where he helped lead the Golden Eagles to a 19-12 record in his first season. He also impacted the team in the classroom, helping raise the team's cumulative GPA to 3.4 and ensuring they had a 100 percent graduation rate through two seasons.
 
During the 2019-20 academic year, Gillion was the program director of Team Breakdown, a top-10 ranked AAU team in the nation. Team Breakdown won back-to-back AAU national championships and produced multiple McDonald's All-Americans. Over one hundred former Team Breakdown players have gone on to play professionally, while thousands went on to compete at the Division I level.
 
Gillion has served as team trainer, coach, and director of player development since 2008. Notable players include Kenny Boynton, Brandon Knight, Tony Mitchell, Zabian Dowdell, Malik Fitts, Justin James, Dewan Hernandez, Anfernee Simons, Kai Jones, Matt Bewley, and Ryan Bewley, among others.
 
Gillion worked on the same staff as LIU head coach Rod Strickland from 2014-17 when he served as a special assistant to the head coach at South Florida. During his time with the Bulls, Gillion was responsible for organizing recruiting activities, summer camps, planning travel needs, organizing student-manager responsibilities, and overseeing the team's academic progress.
 
He started his college coaching career when he became the director of basketball operations at Florida International. From 2013-14, Gillion supervised the team's film exchange, provided coaching staff tech support, and was responsible for overseeing the player's academic progress.
 
Gillion's coaching career began as the head coach at Northeast High School. From 2008-13, he transformed the boys' program. A team that had only won 10 games in four years became a team that won over 20 games and a district championship in Gillion's first season as head coach. He was director of the girls' program and instantly transformed that team as well.
 
Gillion earned his Bachelor's Degree in Social Science from Florida State University in 2008.