Here’s the press release from Warren Wilson College:
NEELEY LEAVES WARREN WILSON AFTER ONE SEASON TO COACH PIEDMONT COLLEGE
Greg Neeley, whose team won a national title in his lone season as head men’s basketball coach at Warren Wilson College, has accepted the head coaching position at Piedmont College in Demorest, Ga. His 5½-month stint at Warren Wilson ends March 15.
The Owls were 7-10 in late January before winning their final 12 games, including four as the ninth seed in the 10-team national tournament of the U.S. Collegiate Athletic Association (DII). Three starters from that championship team return next year.
Neeley was an assistant coach at Piedmont from 2007-2010. An NCAA DIII program, Piedmont was 0-7 this past season before canceling the remainder of its schedule. One of the Lions’ defeats was a 78-72 home loss to Warren Wilson in early December.
“We regret Greg’s decision to leave Warren Wilson after one season, but we wish him well,” President Steve Solnick said. “We are now launching a search for a new coach to lead a men’s basketball program that has built strong momentum over the past several years and has incredibly strong support from the campus community and alumni.”
The Warren Wilson program began its remarkable turnaround in 2008, when Kevin Walden was hired as head coach and sports information director. In 2012 the Owls compiled their first winning season since the 1980s, winning their final nine games to finish 16-9. Walden left the program in August 2012 to return to Knox College, his alma mater, as head coach.
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