Mercyhurst University Athletics

Accomplishments while at Mercyhurst:

• Record at Mercyhurst: 388-235
• Winning Percentage at Mercyhurst: .610
• Most wins as Head Coach in school history – 388 (2003-24)
• First Mercyhurst coach to take men’s basketball team to an NCAA Tournament (2014-15, 2015-16, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23)
• First Mercyhurst coach to win an NCAA Tournament game – Defeated #4 Wheeling Jesuit, 66-65 (2015-16) and has collected eight wins in the national tournament total
• Led Mercyhurst to first Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament Championship (2015-16)
• Led Mercyhurst to 13 straight PSAC Tournament appearances
• Seven 20-win seasons at Mercyhurst (06-07, 10-11, 14-15, 15-16, 18-19, 19-20, 21-22, 22-23) – 10 total in career
• Tied with Dick Fox for most wins in a single season - 26 (2018-19)
• Led team to second most wins in school history of 25 twice twice, doing so in back-to-back season in 21-22 and 22-23
• Top-ranked defense in the country in 2015-16 (60.3 ppg)
• Has coached 10 top-ten defenses while at Mercyhurst

            2003-04= 4th (59.1)
            2012-13 = 7th (60.2)
            2013-14 = 2nd (60.3)
            2014-15 = 8th (62.2)
            2015-16 = 1st (60.3)
            2017-18 = 10th (65.5)
            2018-19 = 2nd  (60.7)
            2019-20 = 6th (63.1)
            2020-21 = 2nd (57.2)
            2022-23 = 10th (62.5)

• PSAC Western Division Coach of the Year – 2010-11, 2015-16 and 2019-20
• Has coached an All-Conference player in 19 of 21 seasons, including all 15 while in the PSAC.

Gary Manchel, the eighth head coach in the history of the men's basketball program, enters his 23rd season as the Lakers' head man in 2025-26.

Manchel has revitalized the Laker program and continues to build on his impressive resume that includes 516 career wins.

The Lakers have been a fixture at the NCAA tournament in recent history making appearances in 2014-15, 2015-16, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22, and 2022-23.

Mercyhurst wrapped up their inaugural Division I season with a strong showing, finishing 3rd in the Northeast Conference (NEC) with an overall record of 15-16 and a 9-7 mark in conference play. Head Coach Gary Manchel once again led a formidable defensive unit, ranking top-5 in the NEC by allowing just 69.9 points per game—highlighted by a dominant 98-45 victory over Mount Aloysius, marking a 53-point margin of victory. With NEC Tournament eligibility on the horizon, Manchel and the Lakers aim to build on their impressive Division I debut as they head into year two.

The Lakers ended up making the PSAC Tournament for a 13th-straight season in the 2023-24 campaign with a record of 15-16 overall while going 11-11 in the conference. Coach Manchel's patented defense was on full display in the team's win over Fredonia on December 9th with the team winning 83-24 with the Blue Devil's 24 points being the fewest ever allowed in program history was proved to be one of the biggest margins of victory ever at 59. Manchel then added one of the biggest achievements of his career to his ledger with his 500th career win coming on February 7th in a contest against Indiana (Pa.) that ended up going into double overtime with the Lakers coming away with a 93-85 win.

Mercyhurst won 25 or more games for the first time in the program's history in back-to-back years under Manchel's direction with 25 in both 2021-22 and 2022-23, going 25-6 in his 20th season. The Lakers won nine of their first 10 games, with the average margin of victory being 21.7 points per game, showing themselves to be dominant from the word go. Their efficiency from deep was some of the best in the PSAC with a mark of 38.1 while their defense was once again dominant, allowing only 62.5 points for the 10th fewest in the country.

In 2021-22 the Lakers once again made the NCAA Tournament as they played a full schedule once again. The Lakers went 25-7  while also going 4-0 vs Gannon and Edinboro. After earning a first round bye, the Lakers defeated UPJ at home in the second round of the PSAC Tournament. Despite falling in the PSAC semifinals to Millersville, the Lakers got their revenge as they knocked Millersville out the NCAA Tournament a week later. The Lakers run came to an end against IUP in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. 

2020-21 was a season unlike any other in Coach Manchel's coaching career as the Lakers were only able to play 11 regular season games due to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the cancelation of the 2020-21 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference schedule.  However, the Green and Blue made the most of it going a perfect 11-0 and punching their ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season.  Mercyhurst earned four wins over nationally-ranked competition during the year knocking off then no. 12 Ferris State (2x) and No. 21 Gannon (2x).  The Lakers advanced to the Atlantic Regional Semifinal after knocking off Fairmont State, before falling to top-seeded Hillsdale College the next night.    

The 2019-2020 season for Mercyhurst was another solid one for Coach Manchel as he led the Lakers to a 20-8 mark and a 17-5 PSAC record which earned them the second seed from the PSAC West for conference tournament.  After losing a game on the road at California (Pa.) the Lakers did not feel the sting of losing for quite a while as they won ten consecutive games to close out the regular season and to being the playoffs.  However, that impressive run was brought to a halt by Shippensburg University in the PSAC Semifinals.  Mercyhurst did enough to earn an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament, but never got to play a game as the COVID-19 pandemic ended play.  Manchel earned PSAC West Coach of the Year honors, while MiyKah McIntosh and Cameron Gross nabbed All-Conference selections.  In the classroom, the team was solid with 14 players being named PSAC Scholar Athletes, while sophomore Nicholas Lang was named the PSAC Champion Scholar.  

During the 2018-2019 campaign, the Lakers matched a school record with 26 wins which saw them go 26-8 overall and 15-6 in PSAC action.  Mercyhurst dropped the PSAC Tournament final on the road at Indiana (Pa.).  However, they earned an at-large into the NCAA Tournament and made the most of it defefeating IUP on their home floor in the Regional Semi-Final, before downing West Liberty University to advance to the school's first-ever Elite Eight.  Their season came to an end at the hands of the top team in the nation Northwest Missouri State by a score of 55-51.  

Mercyhurst had ended the 2015-16 season with a 22-9 record, advancing back to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament for the second consecutive season. The 22 wins was the most during Manchel’s tenure at Mercyhurst, while it is also the second-most wins in program history. The winning season was the program’s 11th straight; a school record, all coming under the Manchel era.

Before reaching the NCAA Tournament, Manchel directed his team to a seventh straight Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament appearance. East Stroudsburg and IUP are the only other programs to reach the conference playoffs in each of the last seven years.

The Lakers finished the regular season second in the PSAC Western Division; the third time ever placing second in the conference (2nd in 2010-11 and 2014-15).

Mercyhurst went on to defeat Clarion, 84-68, in the PSAC Quarterfinals, before knocking off Shippensburg, 79-68, in the Semifinals, advancing to their first ever PSAC Tournament Championship. The Lakers went on to beat West Chester, 70-67, on their home floor, awarding them with the programs first conference title since joining the PSAC back in 2008.

The PSAC Tournament Championship helped the Lakers receive an automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. Mercyhurst was faced with the challenge of playing the top-ranked team in the Atlantic Region, nationally fourth-ranked Wheeling Jesuit.

The Lakers went on to defeat Wheeling Jesuit, 66-65, marking the first NCAA Tournament win in program history.

As the season came to a close in the NCAA Second Round, Mercyhurst finished the season first in the country in scoring defense, holding opponents to 60.3 points per game. It was also the first time that the Lakers finished first nationally in that category.

Since joining the PSAC in the 2008-09, Mercyhurst has not allowed more than 67.6 points per game. After finishing second nationally in 2013-14, the Lakers lowest scoring margin recorded in a year was in Coach Manchel's first season at Mercyhurst in 2003-04, allowing 59.1 points per game, while they were members of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). Mercyhurst has placed in the top ten nationally in scoring defense the past four seasons.

In 2014-15, the Lakers finished 20-7 overall, and advanced to its first NCAA Tournament in school history.

The Lakers finished second last season in the PSAC Western Division, as Mercyhurst, then, outperformed their predicted preseason finish for a sixth straight season. In 2013-14, the Lakers were projected third.

Mercyhurst also went on to defeat national runner-up Indiana (Pa.) twice during the regular season, once at the Kovalchick Center when the Crimson Hawks were ranked fifth in the country. Mercyhurst was the only team in the country to beat IUP in each of the last six seasons. (Includes win at home during 2015-16 season.)

Manchel was honored as the PSAC Western Division Coach of the Year for the second time in 14-15. He was awarded the honor first back in the 2010-11.

In the 2013-14 season, Mercyhurst won 17 games and advanced to the PSAC Final Four for the second time in three years. The Lakers allowed 60.3 points per game, second-best in the country. They won a road postseason game for the first time in program history and picked up a win at rival IUP for the first time ever. With a 66-62 win over Bloomsburg December 18, Manchel collected his 300th career win. He guided the Lakers to a fifth straight PSAC Tournament appearance and outdid preseason expectations for a sixth consecutive time.

Prior to Mercyhurst, Manchel worked for two years on the Ohio University coaching staff under Tim O'Shea. Manchel was a member of O'Shea's first coaching staff in 2001-02. That first season, the Bobcats posted a 17-11 record and followed that with a 14-16 mark in 2002-03.

Manchel also spent nine years as head coach at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, compiling a 131-125 record during his stay. He enjoyed three 20-win seasons over his last five years, including a 45-17 mark during the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 seasons combined.

Manchel was named Northeast-10 Coach of the Year after leading the 2000-01 River Hawks to a 24-7 record that included an appearance in the league's championship game and a berth in the NCAA Division II Tournament where the squad advanced into the second round.

Two times during his stay at UMass Lowell his squads reached the finals of the ECAC Division II Championships. His 1999-00 team posted a 21-10 record and finished as the runner-up, and in 1996-97, he led UMass Lowell to a 20-10 mark and an ECAC Division II Championship.

Before UMass Lowell, Manchel served as an assistant coach at Yale from 1987-92. During his time at Yale, he was a part of three teams that finished in the top ten in scoring defense in all of Division I. In 1989-90 the Bulldogs finished seventh nationally, while the following year they finished third. In 1991-92, coach Manchel was part of a staff that finished 10th in the country. 

Manchel began his coaching career at Slippery Rock, where he served as a graduate assistant for two seasons.

A native of Burlington, Vt., Manchel is a 1985 graduate of the University of Vermont, where he lettered three years for the Catamounts.

Manchel holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Vermont and a master's degree in education (sports administration) from Slippery Rock.

Manchel's Career Record