FULTON, Miss. - Coach Nanci Gray announced her retirement from coaching in a press conference at the Davis Event Center Thursday.
Gray, a former player at then IJC, spent 13 seasons as the Lady Indians' head coach. She accumulated a record of 250 wins and 101 losses. She won seven Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) North Division titles (2007-08, 08-09, 11-12, 14-15, 15-16, 16-17, 18-19), two MACJC championships (07-08, 11-12) and three National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region 23 championships (12-13, 14-15, 15-16) while making three NJCAA National Tournament appearances in Salina, Kan. (12-13, 14-15) and Lubbock, TX (15-16).
She was named NJCAA Region 23 Coach of the Year three times (12-13, 14-15, 15-16) and was twice named MACJC Coach of the Year (07-08, 11-12). Gray coached two NJCAA All-Americans, Jameika Hoskins (Aberdeen) and Jayla Chills (Ripley).
As a player, Gray played a significant role in laying the foundation for the future success of the Lady Indians' basketball program.
During the 1974-75 season, Gray helped IJC win the state and regional championships and advance to the NJCAA National Tournament in Vincennes, Indiana. That season, she was named All-American honorable mention. The following season, Gray and her teammates earned a runner-up finish in the conference tournament.
Her high school coaching career spans 17 years and includes stops at Houlka (79-88), Bruce (88-97) and Tupelo (97-06) high schools with 10 additional years' coaching junior high basketball and working as an assistant coach on the high school level.
Gray was named Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal Coach of the Year three times (98-99, 00-01, 04-05) while at Tupelo. She guided Bruce to the semifinals of the Class 2A state tournament (96-97), won the Class 5A state championship (00-01) and advanced to the 5A semifinals in back-to-back seasons (03-04, 04-05) at Tupelo.
Gray finishes her coaching career with 696 wins and 213 losses in 30 seasons as a high school and college head coach. In her combined 40-year coaching career, she has easily surpassed the 800-win plateau. She coached a Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year and High School All-American with players earned SEC Freshman of the Year, All-SEC, NJCAA All-American, NJCAA Academic All-American honors with two players playing in the WNBA. Other career achievements include: Special Olympic Coach (79-93); Special Olympics International Games at Notre Dame (87) and Minneapolis/St. Paul (91); 1998 ICC Athletic Hall of Fame inductee; featured by the Lee County Courier "Women of the 90's" (00); and Teach of Distinction at Tupelo High School (04).
She lettered in basketball for four years at Houlka and helped lead the Lady Wildcats to a state runner-up finish and earned Mississippi Association of Coaches (MAC) All-State in 1972 and was named to the MAC All-Star team in 1974.
| Season | Record | Head Coach | District / Postseason | Awards / Notes of Interest | |||||
| 1989-90 | 14-12 | Bruce High School | |||||||
| 1990-91 | 21-10 | Bruce High School | 3A District 2 Champs | TriLake Conference Coach of the Year | |||||
| 1991-92 | 22-10 | Bruce High School | 3A District 2 Runner-up | ||||||
| 3A North Half Runner-up | |||||||||
| 3A State Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| 1992-93 | 23-9 | Bruce High School | 3A District 2 Champs | ||||||
| 1993-94 | 24-6 | Bruce High School | 2A District 2 Champs | ||||||
| 2A North Half Runner-up | |||||||||
| 2A State Tournament appearance | Miss. Association of Coaches North All-Star Coach | ||||||||
| 1994-95 | 22-6 | Bruce High School | 2A District 2 Runner-up | ||||||
| 1995-96 | 23-7 | Bruce High School | 2A District 2 Runner-up | ||||||
| 1996-97 | 33-5 | Bruce High School | 2A District 2 Champs | ||||||
| 2A State Tournament semifinals | |||||||||
| 1997-98 | 24-8 | Tupelo High School | Northeast Miss. Daily Journal Coach of the Year | ||||||
| 1998-99 | 35-3 | Tupelo High School | 5A District 1 Champs | Northeast Miss. Daily Journal Coach of the Year | |||||
| 5A North Half Runner-up | |||||||||
| 5A State Tournament Runner-up | |||||||||
| 1999-00 | 32-5 | Tupelo High School | 5A State Tournament Runner-up | ||||||
| 2000-01 | 32-2 | Tupelo High School | 5A North Half Champs | Miss. Association of Coaches Coach of the Year | |||||
| 5A State Champs | Northeast Miss. Daily Journal Coach of the Year | ||||||||
| Tan White selected as a High School All-American | |||||||||
| 2001-02 | 34-2 | Tupelo High School | 5A State Tournament appearance | Northeast Miss. Daily Journal Lee County Coach of the Year | |||||
| Division 2-5A Coach of the Year | |||||||||
| 2002-03 | 26-7 | Tupelo High School | 5A District 1 runner-up | Miss. Association of Coaches All-Star Coach | |||||
| 2003-04 | 22-12 | Tupelo High School | 5A District 1 Champs | ||||||
| 5A North Half Champs | |||||||||
| 5A State Tournament semifinals | |||||||||
| 2004-05 | 33-2 | Tupelo High School | 5A District 1 Champs | Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal Coach of the Year | |||||
| 5A North Half Champs | |||||||||
| 5A State Tournament semifinals | |||||||||
| 2005-06 | 26-6 | Tupelo High School | 5A District 1 Champs | ||||||
| 2006-07 | 14-12 | Itawamba CC | MACJC Tournament appearance | ||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| 2007-08 | 21-9 | Itawamba CC | North Division Champs | MACJC Coach of the Year | |||||
| MACJC Champs | |||||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| 2008-09 | 21-7 | Itawamba CC | North Division Co-Champs | ||||||
| MACJC Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| 2009-10 | 19-9 | Itawamba CC | MACJC Tournament semifinals | ||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament semifinals | |||||||||
| 2010-11 | 18-7 | Itawamba CC | MACJC Tournament semifinals | ||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament semifinals | |||||||||
| 2011-12 | 26-3 | Itawamba CC | North Divison Champs | MACJC Coach of the Year | |||||
| MACJC Champs | Jameika Hoskins named NJCAA All-American | ||||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament Runner-up | |||||||||
| 2012-13 | 19-11 | Itawamba CC | MACJC Tournament semifinals | ||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Champs | |||||||||
| NJCAA National Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| 2013-14 | 14-10 | Itawamba CC | |||||||
| 2014-15 | 23-5 | Itawamba CC | North Division Champs | NJCAA Region 23 Coach of the Year | |||||
| MACJC Tournament appearance | Jayla Chills named NJCAA All-American | ||||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Champs | |||||||||
| NJCAA National Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| 2015-16 | 23-7 | Itawamba CC | North Division Champs | NJCAA Region 23 Coach of the Year | |||||
| MACJC Tournament Runner-up | |||||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Champs | |||||||||
| NJCAA National Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| 2016-17 | 17-8 | Itawamba CC | North Division Champs | ||||||
| MACJC Tournament appearance | |||||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament semifinals | |||||||||
| 2017-18 | 14-8 | Itawamba CC | MACJC Tournament appearance | ||||||
| 2018-19 | 21-5 | Itawamba CC | North Division Champs | ||||||
| MACJC Tournament semifinals | |||||||||
| NJCAA Region 23 Tournament semifinals |
