Stephen Griffin

Stephen Griffin is entering his fourth season as an assistant coach with the Gannon men's basketball program in 2022-23.
 
Griffin has helped Gannon to back-to-back berths in the PSAC Tournament, interrupted by an abbreviated 2020-21 campaign. This past year Gannon finished at 14-13 and went 11-11 in the PSAC West to claim the sixth playoff spot out of the Western Division. The Golden Knights persevered despite an inordinate number of injuries that left them short-handed for much of the second half of the season. The second half was also marked by several postponements that forced Gannon to play numerous games in a short period of time.
 
The 2021-22 campaign was also highlighted by the championship in the Gary Miller Classic. The win over Saint Michael’s in the title game was Gannon’s first since 2017.
 
Griffin helped Gannon through a challenging year in 2020-21 and posted a 10-4 overall record despite not getting its season underway until January and playing an independent schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Golden Knights started with an 8-0 record, the best start to a season since 2008-09. The stretch was highlighted by back-to-back wins over then No. 25 Daemen and marked the first time Gannon upended a top 25 opponent since 2014-15.
 
The Golden Knights climbed as high as No. 21 in the NABC Top 25 Poll in 2021-22. It was the first time Gannon was ranked in the top 25 since the 2012-13 season. The Golden Knights proved to be a solid defensive team and were positioned second in the nation in field goal percent defense (38.5), sixth in three-point field goal defense (29.6) and ninth in rebounds per game (41.14).
 
In his first season with Gannon, Griffin helped the Golden Knights to a fifth-place finish in the PSAC West with a 14-13 overall record and 13-9 in the PSAC. Gannon capped the season making its ninth appearance in the PSAC Tournament. The Golden Knights leaned on a defense that finished fourth in the PSAC and held their opponents to 60 points or less in eight games. Gannon proved to be one of the best rebounding teams in the PSAC finishing the season second in rebounding margin. The Golden Knights also ranked third in both free throw percentage and steals in the PSAC in 2019-20.
 
Griffin helped develop two All-PSAC West selections in 2019-20. DeAnte Cisero and Frank Webb Jr. were both named to the All-PSAC Second Team for the first time in their careers. In 2021-22, Lance-Amir Paul was a second team selection, as well.
 
Griffin came to Gannon after spending two seasons as a graduate manager with the Penn State men’s basketball team. That role in State College saw him performing a number of various duties, including assisting with on-court development, maintaining players’ class and study hall schedules, and preparing video and opponent scouting. He also managed the annual Growing the Game youth summer basketball league, which saw as many as 170 players each year. He was part of a Nittany Lions program that finished 26-13 and won the NIT championship in 2017-18 with an 82-66 win over Utah.
 
During 2016-17, Griffin was a member of the player development and video support staff with the Dallas Mavericks, where he assisted in editing practice and scouting film, as well as pre-draft prospect scouting videos and workouts.
 
Griffin was an assistant coach with Mid-Atlantic Select AAU 16U/17U between 2013-16, working on-court development with guards and assisting in fundraising and travel expenses. Also during that time, he spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Division III Widener in Chester, Pennsylvania, working with all facets of the program and leading the recruiting for two future first-team all-conference performers.
 
He spent the 2013-14 season as an assistant coach at Germantown Friends School in the Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association, helping the team to a postseason tournament berth.
 
Griffin earned his bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Philadelphia University in 2014, playing two seasons for coach Herb Magee. He earned his master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Penn State in 2019.
 
Griffin is single and resides in Erie.