Mercer announces that Greg Gary is out after five seasons as head coach

Greg Gary has been fired after five seasons as the head men’s basketball coach at Mercer, the school announced on Monday. Gary went 81-79 overall but finished below .500 in each of the last three seasons.

“I am thankful for Coach Gary’s leadership of our men’s basketball program over the last five seasons,” AD Jim Cole said in a statement. “He has led the Bears with great integrity, and everyone at Mercer University is grateful for his service and his commitment to our student-athletes who have represented Mercer at the highest level on the court, as well as in the classroom and in the Macon community. I wish him the very best of luck in his future endeavors.”

Gary was hired in 2019 after spending the previous eight seasons on Matt Painter‘s staff at Purdue. He led the Bears to 17-15 and 18-11 records in his first two seasons at the helm but has gone a combined 46-53 over the last three, finishing 7th or worse in the SoCon.

Mercer last played in the NCAA Tournament in 2014, a trip immortalized by the 14-seed Bears’ first round upset win over Duke.

credit to Mercer Athletics for the image