Grovetown girls basketball coach George Dukes steps down to coach college hoops

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Grovetown girls basketball coach George Dukes is stepping down to take the women’s basketball head coaching job at USC-Salkehatchie, both Dukes and the school district confirmed Thursday.

Dukes has coached the Warriors for the last three years, winning a pair of region titles and making an Elite 8 appearance in 2021. He said it’s always been a dream to coach college basketball, and this opportunity was too good to up.

“I kind of had a relationship with [former Salkehatchie coach Olivia Gaines], because she was recruiting some of my players,” Dukes said. Gaines left USC-Salkehatchie to be the first coach of the new Richard Bland women’s basketball program.

Dukes said he’ll still be involved with the Grovetown program this summer as they figure out a new coach.

“I’m still going to be helping out Grovetown until everything gets squared away. I don’t want to leave them high and dry,” he said. “I’ll be travelling back and forth, making sure both programs are getting what they need.

“I have a real ive wife that’s behind me 100 percent,” he said, while laughing about the amount of travelling he has ahead this summer.

Dukes is the second local girls basketball coach to pursue a new opportunity this offseason. Last month, former Josey head coach Jawan Bailey stepped down to coach Newton in Atlanta.