Grand Valley State University Men's Basketball

Cornell Mann was named the sixth head coach in GVSU Basketball history on April 2, 2022 and will begin his fourth season as head coach in 2025-26. In his first three seasons as head coach for GVSU, Mann has posted a 50-40 record. In the 2024-25 season, Mann guided the Lakers to a 16-13 overall record and 12-8 GLIAC mark. Mann coached two players that were named to the All-GLIAC second team and three players to the All-GLIAC defensive team which was the most out of any team in the conference. Mann helped lead the Lakers to a GLIAC tournament championship appearance in his second season, finishing with a 16-15 record and 11-7 GLIAC record. In the 2023-24 season, Mann coached three players that were named to the All-GLIAC second team and two players named to the All-GLIAC defensive team.  In his first season under the helm at GVSU, Mann led the Lakers to an 18-12 record and an 11-7 GLIAC mark.  Mann comes to Grand Valley State after spending five years (2017-21) as a member of Cuonzo Martin's coaching staff at Missouri. In addition to his tenure at Missouri, Mann has built a wealth of coaching knowledge and experience at previous stops that include Oakland (2016-17), Iowa State (2011-15), Dayton (2008-11), Western Michigan (2003-08) and Central Michigan (2001-03). Mann brings NCAA Tournament coaching experience from five different schools, including a run of four consecutive NCAA berths at Iowa State. In addition, Mann has helped recruit and develop eight NBA draftees and coached six All-Americans. Mann recruited and coached Western Michigan's David Kool, the all-time leading scorer in Mid-American Conference history.  In first his first season at Missouri, the Tigers qualified for their first NCAA Tournament since 2013 and recorded their first 20-win season in four years. Mann was the lead recruiter for First Team All-SEC guard Kassius Robertson, who led Missouri in scoring in 2017-18.  Mann helped steer Missouri to an impressive 2020-21 season, in which the Tigers went 16-10 and secured an NCAA Tournament berth for the second time in four seasons. In 2020-21, the Tigers spent 11 consecutive weeks in the AP Top 25, reaching as high as No. 10 nationally for the first time since Jan. 7, 2013. With Mann and company, the squad went undefeated in nonconference play and finished the season with three wins over Top 10 teams (No. 6 Illinois, No. 6 Tennessee and No. 10 Alabama) in the same campaign for the first time since 2011-12. The Tigers finished the regular season as one of 13 teams nationally with seven Quad 1 victories and totaled a 9-4 record against the 2021 NCAA Tournament field, beating six conference champions along the way. In his time at Iowa State, Mann recruited and tutored one of the top point guards in college basketball in Flint native Monte Morris, who finished his Iowa State career with the best assist-to-turnover ratio in NCAA history (4.65-1). Morris remains the Cyclones' all-time assists leader.   Mann was on staff at Dayton (2008-11) for three-straight postseason berths. In his first season with the Flyers, Mann helped coach Dayton to the second-most wins in school history (27) and a second round NCAA Tournament appearance. Prior to Dayton, Mann served stints on coaching staffs at Western Michigan (2003-08) and Central Michigan (2001-03), with the Broncos making a Big Dance appearance in 2004 and the Chippewas advancing to the tournament in 2003, respectively. A native of Royal Oak Township, Michigan, Mann earned a degree in family development from Akron in 1995, playing his final three seasons of eligibility for the Zips after starting his collegiate career at Colorado. He then earned his master's degree at Iowa State in 2014. Mann has two children, a daughter, Cyncere, and a son, Maliq, and is engaged to his fiancee Justina Phillips.

DJ Mocini was hired as an assistant coach to Cornell Mann's staff in May 2022 and will begin his fourth season with the Lakers in the 2025-26 season.  In 2024-25, GVSU posted a 16-13 overall record and 12-8 conference mark. The Lakers had two players named to the All-GLIAC second team and three players earn All-GLIAC defensive team honors which was the most out of any teams in the conference. In the 2023-24 season, GVSU advanced to the GLIAC tournament championship game and finished with a 16-15 overall record and 11-7 GLIAC record. Marius Grazulis, William Dunn, and Ethan Alderink were named to the All-GLIAC second team, while Trevor Smith and Mason Docks earned All-GLIAC defensive honors. In his first season as assistant coach at Grand Valley State, Mocini helped the Lakers to an 18-12 overall record and 11-7 GLIAC mark. The Lakers made the GLIAC Tournament for the eighth consecutive season. Marius Grazulis was named to the All-GLIAC first team and Kinsgley Okanu and Trevor Smith were named to the All-GLIAC defensive team. He spent the 2021-22 season on staff at Oakland University as director of basketball operations, where his responsibilities included day-to-day operations, including travel, budgetary management, camps, and donor relations.  Prior to joining the staff at Oakland, Mocini spent eight seasons at Central Michigan University, where he started as Coordinator of Basketball Operations before being promoted into an assistant coaching role from 2019-21. Mocini was heavily involved in recruiting, academics, budget, fundraising, and team travel during his time at CMU. From 2015 to 2019, the Chippewas advanced to postseason play four times, including a trip to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) during the 2014-15 season. Before CMU, Mocini served as an assistant coach at Northwood University for three years. The native of Saugatuck, Mich., guided the Timberwolves to a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division championship in 2012, setting a school record for NCAA Division II wins (16) and consecutive victories (8). Mocini served as a graduate assistant for the Dayton men's basketball program that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2009. In 2010, the Flyers won the NIT championship. He completed his master's degree in educational leadership at Dayton in 2012. Mocini graduated from Albion College in 2008 from the Carl A. Gerstacker Institute for Business and Management. He played four years for the Brits basketball team, serving as team captain his senior season. Mocini and his wife Rachel reside in Allendale with sons Trey and Dutton.

Sterling Johnson enters his second season as assistant coach for GVSU for the 2025-26 season.  In his first season at GVSU in 2024-25, Johnson helped lead the Lakers to a 16-13 overall record and 12-8 GLIAC mark. Two Lakers earned All-GLIAC second team honors and three were named to the All-GLIAC defensive team which was the most out of any teams in the conference.  Prior to coming to GVSU, Johnson spent one season as a graduate assistant at Virginia Tech where was responsible for assisting with player development, film breakdown and scouting reports. During his time there, he helped the Hokies reach the second round of the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) before losing to Ohio State. Before arriving at Virginia Tech, Johnson gained experience at Northwood University, Schoolcraft College, the University of Northwestern Ohio, and Defiance College. While at Schoolcraft, he supported the development of three players who advanced their athletic careers, including assisting Keionte Cornelius, the second-leading scorer in all of NJCAA Division II, who went on to sign with Division I Jackson State. At the University of Northwestern Ohio (UNOH), he coached Nathan Lessing, the school’s fourth all-time leading scorer. Additionally, Johnson played a key role in UNOH qualifying for the conference tournament for the first time in three years. At Defiance College, he was responsible for recruiting Marrell Jordan, the school’s tenth leading scorer. Johnson was a four-year letterwinner at Saginaw Valley State from 2012 to 2016, appearing in 108 games. During his senior campaign in 2015-16, he was part of the winningest team in program history, which advanced to the Elite Eight while he shot 46% from the field and 43% from three-point range that season. He earned his bachelor's degree from Saginaw Valley State University in 2016 and went on to obtain a Master of Business Administration from Defiance College in 2019. Most recently, he received a degree in Agricultural Life Sciences with a focus on Education from Virginia Tech in 2024.

Caileb Brown enters his first season as assistant coach and third overall season on staff under head coach Cornell Mann in the 2025-26 season.  In the 2024-25 season, Brown helped guide GVSU to a 16-13 overall record and 12-8 GLIAC mark. Three Lakers were named to the All-GLIAC defensive team which was the most out of any team in the conference.  In his first season at GVSU, Brown helped lead the Lakers to a GLIAC tournament championship appearance. Brown helped coach three players that were named to the All-GLIAC second team and two players named to the All-GLIAC defensive team.  Prior to GVSU, Brown was a student assistant for Michigan State in the 2022-23 season. The Spartans went 21-13 on the season and made a Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA tournament. In 2021-22, Brown was a student assistant under assistant coach Mike Garland at Michigan State. Brown played Division I college basketball at Detroit Mercy under head coach Mike Davis in 2020-21.