Following the most successful coach in program history is never an easy thing, but it helps if the successor has first-hand knowledge of that winning culture.
New Gainesville girls basketball coach Brenda Hill-Gilmore was the leading scorer in Hall County high school history, that is until her daughter, Tasha Humphrey, led the Lady Red Elephants to three state titles in the early 2000s. Hill-Gilmore scored 1,961 points for East Hall before graduating in 1982.
“She was such a star at East Hall that you might have East Hall people rooting for a Gainesville coach,” longtime Gainesville coach Manson Hill said.
Hill, who retired after last season, was assisted during the golden period in Gainesville basketball by Hill-Gilmore (1998-2002), who is now taking over the Lady Red Elephants program.
“Brenda brings a wealth of basketball knowledge, having coached at the major college level, and she also has a good knowledge of what it takes to win in this community,” Hill said. “That’s why I was very excited that she was going to be my successor.”
Hill-Gilmore is taking over a program that returns seven seniors from a team that finished 14-12 last year, narrowly missing a postseason berth.
Senior post player Rebecca Webster, who averaged 13.3 points and six rebounds per game and was a 67 percent free throw shooter, is back to help her new coach lead the Lady Red Elephants.
When the team lost in overtime to Franklin County in the Region 8-AAA tournament last year, it left Gainesville out of the playoffs for the first time in the last 15 seasons. The Lady Red Elephants have won the region three of the past four years and won state titles in 1994, 2001, 2003 and 2004.
It’s a lot to live up to, even for one of Hall County’s brightest stars.
“There are a lot of high expectations for the program — coach Hill set the standard for Gainesville basketball,” Hill-Gilmore said. “I’ve been here before, I know what the expectations are and I’m ready for the challenge.”
Hill-Gilmore played college ball at Auburn University and North Georgia College & State University before playing for five years professionally overseas. After her stint as Hill’s assistant she coached under Andy Landers for the highly successful Georgia Lady Dogs basketball team, led for four years by Humphrey.
She also has head coaching experience, having led the Winder-Barrow girls basketball team to a 45-51 record in Class AAAA the past four years. One of the stars of those teams was her daughter, Mimi Hill, who is now playing at Western Kentucky.
Hill-Gilmore won’t have a daughter to coach at Gainesville, but that doesn’t mean she won’t be bringing more players under her wing. She still keeps up with 2010-2011 Lady Bulldoggs star Brittany Witt, now playing at Middle Georgia College. Witt and Hill helped lead Winder-Barrow to a 17-10 season in 2008-2009.
Hill-Gilmore knows the move from AAAA to AAA doesn’t make anything easier, especially in a sport like basketball.
“The only difference is having more kids to choose from (in AAAA), but the competition is still tough,” Hill-Gilmore said.
That competition includes defending subregion champs Walnut Grove and a handful of Hall County rivals, but the Lady Red Elephants have no plans to shrink from their spot as a traditional powerhouse.
Region play is still in the distance, but Gainesville has already started strong, defeating Class AAAAA Campbell 37-31 on Nov. 19 to open the season 1-0. The Lady Red Elephants play next at 7 p.m. Dec. 2 at home against North Oconee. The former Lady Viking will take her squad to East Hall the following day for a 6 p.m. tip-off and a homecoming of sorts. Region play starts Dec. 9 at Oconee County, and then the road back to the postseason truly begins.
“I’ve got six seniors that are really hungry, they’ve really set the tone for the whole team,” Hill-Gilmore said. “I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people.”