Elon University Athletics

Josh Wick will be in his 13th season overall and his second as associate head coach at Elon University in 2022-23 after joining Charlotte Smith’s coaching staff on July 26, 2011. A 2001 graduate of the University of North Carolina, Wick came to Elon after spending the previous three seasons at East Tennessee State.

Last season, Wick helped guide the team to an 11-21 overall record and 7-11 conference record, highlighted by a 9-8 road record, the best since 2017. The Phoenix earned the No. 9 seed in the CAA Championship and advanced to the second round for the fifth consecutive year. The team achieved an All-Rookie Team selection in Maraja Pass for the second straight year. 

In the 2022-23 season, Wick helped lead the Phoenix to a 9-21 overall record and 5-13 in conference play. Elon finished eleventh in the regular season, earning the No. 11 seed in the CAA Championship. This was the fourth consecutive year the Phoenix advanced to the second round of the CAA Championship.

During the 2021-22, Wick helped guide the Phoenix to a 17-12 (9-9 CAA) record, marking the first time the maroon and gold ended its regular season with a .500 or above conference record (9-9) since its 2017-18 campaign. Elon's road record (7-7) was also the best it has been since the 2017-18 season. Entering the CAA Championship as the four seed, the Phoenix fell to fifth-seeded Charleston in the quarterfinals. Senior Brie Perpignan was tabbed second team all-conference in addition to becoming the 25th member of the program's 1,000-point club.

During the 2020-21 season, Wick helped lead the Phoenix to a 7-8 (3-5 CAA) record, including wins against James Madison (77-55), Drexel (59-57) and Delaware (83-61). Elon entered the CAA Championship as the six seed, eventually falling to the three seed, Drexel, in the quarterfinals. For her performance in the classroom, senior Saadia Munford was named the 2020-21 CAA Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year.  

In 2019-20, Wick helped lead the team to a 14-16 (8-10 CAA) record on the season. Entering the CAA Campionship as the seventh seed, the Phoenix defeated Hofstra 71-51 in the opening round prior to the remainder of the championship and postseason being canceled.  

Following the 2017-18 season, the Phoenix finished with a 9-21 overall record and 4-14 record in conference play during the 2018-19 campaign. Elon finished eighth in the regular season, earning the No. 8 seed in the CAA Tournament. The Phoenix were defeated in the first round.   
 
In 2016-17, Wick helped the Phoenix to a record-breaking season that saw Elon win the CAA regular season and tournament titles while reaching the first NCAA Tournament in program history. On the year, Elon set a new program Division I record for victories with a 27-7 mark to go with a 16-2 record in CAA action. The Phoenix earned the regular-season title with a commanding 82-48 triumph over UNCW on March 1 inside Alumni Gym before defeating all three of its CAA Tournament opponents by nearly 25 points. The run was capped with a 78-60 defeat of James Madison in Harrisonburg, Va. As a result, the Phoenix earned its first-ever bid to the NCAA Tournament, where it battled sixth-seeded West Virginia and ultimately fell in a back-and-forth game to the Mountaineers in College Park, Md. Throughout the year, Elon earned nine consecutive victories from Dec. 17, 2016, to Jan. 15, 2017, marking the most in a row as a Division I program and the most consecutive wins since 1983-84. It also set new program Division I records for highest attended games, seeing three crowds of more than 1,000 spectators pack Alumni Gym during conference play. At season’s end, Lauren Brown was named the CAA’s Dean Ehlers Leadership Award winner.

Following up the strong 2016-17 season, Elon touted the sixth-youngest roster in the nation with three seniors, three sophomores and six freshmen. After going 8-3 in non-conference play, Elon struggled to a 4-4 start in CAA action before rattling off the program's Division I record with 13-straight victories from Jan. 28 to March 10 on the way to capturing its second CAA Tournament title in as many years to secure its spot in the NCAA Tournament. In winning the CAA Tournament, the Phoenix made conference history by becoming just the second time in tournament history not seeded No. 1 or No. 2 to win the title. The only other occasion a No. 3 seed on the CAA Tournament was in 1992. Shay Burnett was named a First Team All-CAA honoree for the third-straight season and the CAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player after leading the program with 13.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game. Malaya Johnson was named a Second Team All-CAA performer with 11.7 points and 5.9 rebounds per game while Jada Graves was tabbed CAA Defensive Player of the Year with a spot on the All-Defensive Team. A key cog was the development of Ra'Shika White, a Second Team All-CAA performer and the league's Sixth Player of the Year. After averaging just 5.1 points per game with 3.5 rebounds per outing as a rookie in 2016-17, White took major steps with 12.6 points per game and 6.0 rebounds per contest as a sophomore in 2017-18 and played a big role for the program coming off the bench in 32 of its 33 games. During the year, Elon posted a perfect 13-0 record at home inside Alumni Gym to complete just the second perfect home slate in program history. 

In all, Elon posted a stellar 52-15 record across the 2016-17 and 2017-18 campaigns with a 30-6 record in CAA action. Along the way, the Phoenix posted a gaudy 24-2 record in Alumni Gym, closing the building having won each of its final 18 games going back to January 2017.
 
Elon's stellar run to date was setup by a solid 2015-16 season in which the Phoenix went 18-13 and made a second-straight appearance in the WNIT. Overall, it was the team’s fourth postseason appearance at the time and the third in four seasons for Elon. The 2015-16 campaign was highlighted by the program’s first-ever win over Atlantic Coast Conference opponent North Carolina State, a 69-66 final in Raleigh, N.C. At season’s end, Burnett became the first Phoenix player to earn a spot on the All-CAA First Team. Burnett went on to repeat as a First Team All-CAA honoree in 2016-17.
 
In its inaugural season in the CAA in 2014-15, Wick helped lead the Phoenix to a 19-13 overall record and an 11-7 conference record. The team tied for third during the regular season and earned the No. 4 seed in the CAA Tournament, where the Phoenix fell just four points shy of advancing to the title game. It marked the third straight trip to the conference tournament semifinals and while it fell short of the final, the Phoenix earned its first-ever bid to the WNIT.
 
The final season of Southern Conference play for Elon saw the Phoenix finish with a 10-8 record in SoCon action with the team reaching the tournament semifinals for the second-straight season. Jenifer Rhodes was tabbed SoCon Freshman of the Year, the third SoCon Freshman of the Year honor for Phoenix players in six seasons.
 
In 2012-13, Elon posted a 19-14 record, including its best-ever Southern Conference mark of 14-6. The maroon and gold earned a program-best No. 3 seed in the conference tournament and reached the semifinals. That year, Wick and the staff took the Phoenix to its second postseason appearance of the Division I era, taking part in the 2013 Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI) and reaching the quarterfinals before falling to McNeese State. During the season, Elon held a 13-game home winning streak dating from Dec. 15, 2012, to March 23, 2013. The team also went on a six-game winning streak during January, finishing the month with a 6-1 record. During the season, the Phoenix earned wins over all 10 teams in the league, including conference champion Chattanooga. The loss marked the only SoCon defeat of the year for the Mocs. At season’s end, all five starters – Kelsey Evans, Ali Ford, Sam Coffer, Kelsey Harris and Zora Stephenson – were named to the 2012-13 Winter All-SoCon Academic team. Elon was the only program in the conference to have all five starters earn all-academic honors.
 
Over the course of his three seasons at ETSU, Wick helped the Lady Bucs to a 62-32 overall record, including a 49-11 mark in Atlantic Sun Conference action. While working primarily with guards and perimeter players, Wick coached a pair of A-Sun Players of the Year and First Team All-Atlantic Sun honorees as well as three A-Sun All-Tournament Team selections. One of the players Wick helped coach was Siarre Evans. Evans, the third player to reach 1000 points and 1,000 rebounds in ETSU history, became the first player in conference history to be named First Team All-A-Sun all four years and just the sixth player to win multiple Player of the Year awards. In addition to Evans, Wick also directed another 1,000-point scorer TaRonda Wiles. Wiles was a two-time First Team All-Atlantic Sun members and was named A-Sun co-Player of the Year in 2009-10 with Evans. After seeing Evans lead the conference in scoring and rebounding as a junior, Wiles captured the scoring title in 2009-10 while Evans won the rebounding crown for the second consecutive year.
 
Prior to his arrival in Johnson City, Tenn., Wick spent the 2007-08 season coaching at UNLV. During his time with the Lady Rebels, he coached one of the best players to ever wear the UNLV uniform in Sequoia Holmes. Holmes led the Mountain West Conference in scoring and became the third UNLV player to reach the WNBA.
 
Before his stint at UNLV, Wick spent three years at North Carolina, where he gained valuable experience under head coach Sylvia Hatchell and assistant coach Charlotte Smith as a video coordinator. During his time in Chapel Hill, the Tar Heels enjoyed an impressive run with UNC winning three ACC Championships and making back-to-back Final Four appearances.
 
Wick began his coaching career in 1999 when he took over the reins at Cresset Christian Academy in Durham, N.C. During his three-year run, he guided the men’s basketball team to a regular season championship and a perfect conference record.
 
Wick earned his bachelor’s degree in communication studies from North Carolina in 2001 and also earned a minor in exercise and sport science.

Quoting Coach Smith...
“I am excited to welcome Josh Wick to the Phoenix women's basketball program. He has a vast knowledge of the game, excels in scouting, does a tremendous job of player development on the court and brings a great level of excitement when it comes to recruiting.”