Cedar Rapids Xavier turns to John Gianforte as its next girls’ basketball coach

CEDAR RAPIDS — How do you follow a legend?

“We’re going to cancel girls’ basketball the next couple of years and let the memories fade a little,” John Gianforte said.

Kidding, of course.

“Seriously, it’s an impossibility to follow somebody like Tom Lilly,” Gianforte said in the wake of his hiring as Cedar Rapids Xavier girls’ basketball coach.

“He’s a living legend. He won six state championships. He is a pillar in the classroom and the community. If I try to compare myself to him ... I can’t. But I don’t take this opportunity lightly.”

Gianforte, 54, will become only the second coach in Xavier history and inherits one of the state’s elite programs.

Lilly announced in November that the 2024-25 season, his 40th, would also be his last.

Led by a monster postseason by Miss Iowa Basketball 2025 Libby Fandel, the Saints went 22-4 and captured the Class 4A state championship, the program’s sixth — all under Lilly.

Fandel departs for the University of Kansas, but three starters — Madden Wilson, Jaselle Lang and Reese Komenda — are back for 2025-26.

The Saints are ranked No. 4 in The Gazette’s preliminary Class 4A state rankings.

“This will be life without the two L’s — Libby and Lilly,” Gianforte said. “I want to take custodial care of this program and have the kids, and me, grow our own shade.”

Gianforte was the head boys’ coach at Cedar Rapids Prairie in the early 2000s. In recent years, he has served as a boys’ varsity assistant at Xavier, then head sophomore coach.

“We are thrilled to welcome Coach Gianforte as the (Saints’) next leader,” Xavier principal Lynn Holverson said in a release. “His deep experience, commitment to student growth and strong presence in the Xavier community make him the ideal person to guide our student-athletes both on and off the court.

“Coach Gianforte’s passion for teaching, mentoring and building relationships aligns perfectly with our mission and values.”

In addition to his coaching responsibilities, Gianforte serves as an intervention specialist and school facilitator at Regis Middle School.

A native of Philadelphia who was raised in New Jersey, Gianforte holds a Bachelor of Arts in secondary education with a focus on special education and social studies from Delaware State University.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com