Assistant women’s basketball coach Greg Bruce has decided to step down from his position and return home to his family in Oregon, following a successful season with the Nanooks. Bruce helped lead Alaska to its best ever start to a season since joining the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and to the cusp of its first ever GNAC Tournament appearance.

"I enjoyed my time with the Nanooks immensely," said Bruce. "I am really appreciative of Coach Bench and the athletic department for giving me this wonderful opportunity and it could not have been better."

Continued Bruce, "The student athletes and Cody were amazing to work with and the administration was very supportive and respectful of everything that happened in my time here. It was a tremendous experience."

Head coach Cody Bench, who hired Bruce at the beginning of the season, thanked Bruce for his time and hard work and wishes him well on his return home.

"We had a great season and Greg contributed to that greatly," said Bench. "We are grateful for his efforts and all his help with the development of this team. Greg has many qualities that you just cannot replace. His experience, caring and compassion for the team as well as his love and respect for the sport will be missed. I am grateful for the time that we had with him and I hope he and his family have a great retirement."

Director of Athletics Dr. Gary Gray reiterated Bench’s comments, saying "We are sad to see someone of Greg’s caliber leave the program, especially after such a successful season. But, I completely understand and respect his decision to return home to be with his family. We wish him all the best in the future."

The Nanooks, who finished the season with a .500 winning percentage (14-14) for the first time since 2001-02 and started the year 5-0 in addition to a six game winning streak (four in the GNAC) later in the year, will look to build upon the successes that Bench and Bruce built this season. The search for a new assistant coach will begin immediately.

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