Jamel Gist has been named the 15th Head Men’s Basketball Coach in school history by Director of Athletics Terry Wansart. Coach Gist was selected from a talented pool of candidates, and Wansart stated “His enthusiasm, player first style, leadership and administrative skills truly helped him stand out through this process” Coach Gist said ” I am excited to get started and connect with the amazing student athletes at Hunter, and will focus on gearing them to success on and off the court. Coach Pelin has done an incredible job during his tenure here and I look forward to building on is for years to come. Go Hawks!”
Gist has a long history in the City University of New York Athletic Conference. He was an all-conference player at Brooklyn College, and served as both an Assistant Coach and Head Coach at York College. During his freshman year at NYU Polytech he was named the Skyline Rookie of the Year, displaying impressive stats with an average of 17.8 point per game, 5.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists in the 2012-2013 season. He later transferred to Brooklyn College and earned a degree in Business management and Finance. On the court he started all 102 games for the Bulldogs, was twice named team captain, and led the team to back-to-back championship games winning the championship in 2016. In three seasons he averaged 14.7 points per game for a career total of 1,458 points.
When Director of Athletics Terry Wansart was asked about Coach Gist she praised “His work ethic, his personal understanding of the benefits of CUNY, his ability to build relationships with players, coaches and administrators is really evident when meeting with Jamel.” Wansart also observed “I have watched coach support and improve his players over the past few years, as we have competed against him, always maintaining a team concept.”
After graduating he joined the coaching staff at York College and was an assistant coach from 2016, until he was named interim Head Coach in 2022. During his time at York his guidance resulted in 7 cardinals achieve All-Conference selections, and the 2018-2019 Rookie of the year. At the helm he led York back into the conference championship tournament in back-to-back seasons in 21-22 and 22-23. The cardinals made it to the Semi-Finals in 2021-2022 for the first time since 14-15.
The much-anticipated season opener for Coach Gist and the Hawks will take place when they travel to Rutgers-Camden on Wednesday November 8th for a 6pm tip off.
