Bluffton High hires coach from NC with winning record to lead basketball team
Bluffton has hired a state championship-winning coach to lead its boys basketball program.
Bradley Gabriel, who won more than 300 games coaching in North Carolina, will be the Bobcats’ new coach. The school announced Gabriel’s hire on Thursday. Gabriel replaces Woodie Melton, who was there for just one season.
Gabriel recently coached at Lincoln Charter in Denver, N.C., where he went 197-40 from 2013-2021. Lincoln won the 2017 NC Class A championship, going 31-3 and defeating Kestrel Heights, 97-75, in the title game. It was the school’s first team championship.
At Lincoln, Gabriel’s teams won eight conference championships, seven conference tournaments, advanced to the regional finals six years and state finals twice.
“This year put a lot of things in perspective for me and I thought it was time to give the keys to someone else,” Gabriel posted on Facebook when he resigned.
Before Lincoln Charter, Gabriel coached at South Iredell, Bandys, North Iredell and Hopewell High. At South Iredell, he took a winless team prior to his arrival to 19 wins and a conference title.
Gabriel has an overall record of 336-145 with 13 conference championships. He has a 33-12 playoff record with nine regional and two state championship appearances.
Gabriel was inducted into Lincoln County Hall of Fame in 2022.
Bluffton is coming off a 7-16 and missed the playoffs last year.
