Matt Hunter has been named Gettysburg College’s next head men’s basketball coach, announced by Executive Director of Athletics and Recreation Troy Dell on Tuesday.
Hunter comes to Gettysburg after a successful 13-year stint as head men’s basketball coach at nearby York (Pa.). He takes over as the 13th coach in the 125-year history of the Bullets’ men’s basketball program.
“We are excited to have Matt join us as our next head men’s basketball coach,” Dell said. “He is a proven coach on the court with a highly successful run at York College. His dedication to developing young men on and off the court makes him a great fit for Gettysburg. I am confident that he will be able to step right in and build on the program’s and department’s success.”
Since taking over the York program in 2012, Hunter led the Spartans to a 175-148 record. He guided his team to 20 or more wins four times since the 2017-18 season, including a 22-7 mark in 2024-25. Last season ended with the program’s first MAC Commonwealth championship and its fourth NCAA tournament appearance. York hosted the first and second rounds of the NCAA championship for the second time under Hunter, winning its opening round for the fourth time before falling to the overall No. 1 seed and national runner-up New York University, 62-52.
“I’d like to thank Troy Dell and the other members of the search committee for the opportunity to become the next coach at Gettysburg College and continue the strong tradition of men’s basketball here,” Hunter said. “I’m excited to quite literally hit the ground running and work with the players in the men’s basketball program. I’m looking forward to beginning the preparation for our upcoming season and the challenging schedule before us all, while getting acclimated to the athletic department and Gettysburg College overall.”
In his 13 seasons, Hunter engineered four regular-season conference championships, three conference tournament titles and four appearances in the second round of the NCAA tournament. He coached three conference Players of the Year and All-Americans as well as a Capital Athletic Conference (CAC) Male Senior Scholar-Athlete. He also served four years as head men’s golf coach, winning the 2013 conference championship.
Prior to a move to the MAC Commonwealth in 2020-21, Hunter’s Spartans made it two of the final three CAC championships with a 79-77 win at Christopher Newport in the 2020 conference championship game. The season capped a run of three straight NCAA tournament appearances for York, advancing to the second round each season. Hunter mentored Jared Wagner to CAC Player of the Year, NABC All-Region, and second-team All-American accolades that season.
The Spartans put together an 86-29 record between the 2016-17 and 2019-20 campaigns with a pair of conference tournament championships, three regular-season CAC championships, three NCAA tournament appearances, and a pair of CAC Player of the Year award winners.
Hunter was named regional co-coach of the year following the 2017-18 season. That year, he guided York to a No. 4 national ranking after a 16-game win streak. The 24 wins that season were the third most in program history.
In 2022-23, the Spartans finished 14-12 overall but ripped off seven wins in their final nine games to earn a spot in MAC Commonwealth tournament. The 2023-24 team finished 14-11 and narrowly missed the conference tournament but did notch a pair of top-25 wins over Hood and Widener late in the year.
Prior to his arrival in York, Hunter spent four seasons as a full-time assistant coach at DeSales. The Bulldogs went 84-32 during Hunter’s tenure on the bench. DeSales made the NCAA tournament twice in those four years, advancing the national quarterfinals in 2008-09 and third round in 2009-10. DeSales won two MAC Freedom championships and played in the championship game in three of the four years he was with the program.
Prior to Hunter’s stop at DeSales, he was on staff at The College of New Jersey. While there, he was thrust into the role of interim head coach for the 2007-08 season. Prior to being named as the interim coach, he served as a part-time assistant for the Lions in 2005-06 and moved to the full-time assistant position for 2006-07.
Hunter was a three-year letterwinner at Salisbury, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in physical education in 2005. He posted a GPA of 3.62 and was a three-time CAC All-Academic team selection. Hunter was a two-year captain for the Sea Gulls.
Hunter will officially assume his duties next week in time for the first official day of practice on Oct. 15.
Gettysburg, which is coming off a 21-win season and an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament in 2024-25, opens the 2025-26 season against Wilson in the Gettysburg Tip-Off Tournament on Friday, Nov. 7. Game time is 6 p.m.
This article first appeared on the Gettysburg College website.