Megan Griffith
Introduction
Megan Griffith, the head coach of Columbia University’s women’s basketball program, was suspended for the first three games of the 2026-27 season following an outside review of her conduct that was triggered by complaints about her behavior during practices from previous seasons, the university announced on Thursday, October 15, 2026. The review was conducted by an external firm after the university received a complaint about Griffith’s coaching behavior during practices from a previous season, and the university did not specify exactly what she was alleged to have done. Griffith, 41, is the winningest coach in Columbia women’s basketball history, and the suspension arrived weeks before what the program had billed as its most ambitious season yet.
Background Information
Griffith played at Columbia from 2003 to 2007 and was a two-time All-Ivy League selection; after playing professionally in Europe, she joined the coaching ranks as an assistant for Courtney Banghart at Princeton during a stretch where the Tigers made three NCAA Tournaments. In 2016 she took over at her alma mater, and this season marks her 11th leading the women’s basketball program. Over that span she built Columbia into a consistent mid-major power: a 171-99 record that makes her the winningest coach in program history, three regular-season Ivy League titles from 2022-25, two at-large NCAA Tournament bids, the program’s first NCAA Tournament victory, a WNIT runner-up finish in 2023, and the WBIT championship last season. She is a three-time Ivy League Coach of the Year.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Suspended for conduct — a university discipline case, not a criminal one. Columbia suspended Griffith for three games after an external firm reviewed complaints about her conduct during practices in past seasons. No specific allegation was made public; the university said the review found nothing requiring notice to the NCAA of rules violations and involved no allegations of Title IX or anti-discrimination violations. No law-enforcement involvement has been reported, and the university’s findings have not been tested in any public proceeding.
The suspension will keep Griffith off the sideline for the season opener against Davidson on November 2 and tournament games against Rhode Island on November 6 and Belmont on November 8 in Nashville, and Columbia said it will not name an interim head coach for the games she misses. The university said the review was conducted by an outside firm and was triggered by complaints regarding her behavior during practices from previous seasons, and that Griffith had “expressed regret for occasions in which her interactions with the team did not align with expectations.” The university also said the review did not require notice to the NCAA of any rules violations and did not involve any allegations of violations of the school’s anti-discrimination policies, Title IX or related policies. Griffith accepted the discipline in a statement: “I fully respect the process of the university review and take complete responsibility for everything that happens in the program, including the times my conduct fell short. As the head coach and a former student-athlete at Columbia University, there is nothing more important to me than the success and well-being of my players.”
Public Reaction and Consequences
The current group of Columbia Lions released their own statement to several media outlets: “This is not indicative of our experience as part of this program, which has been overwhelmingly positive. We fully stand with and support Coach Griffith. This program is a family, and we pride ourselves on being a supportive and inclusive environment for all. We are ready to attack the season.” National coverage framed the suspension against the program’s rise — USA Today noted the three games she will miss, against strong mid-major opponents, could be crucial to the Lions’ NCAA Tournament resume. Within a day the suspension had been carried by the New York Post, ESPN and USA Today, with the players’ defense of their coach featured in each account.
Current Status
Griffith remains Columbia’s head coach: the suspension covers three games, and she is set to return to the sideline for a demanding stretch against Michigan on November 12, Maryland on November 15 and Duke on November 21, leading a roster built around reigning Ivy League Player of the Year Riley Weiss. Columbia has not disclosed the specific conduct findings, and no further discipline has been announced. The university’s account — regret expressed, conduct that “fell short,” no NCAA or Title IX issues — is the only public record of what the review found.
Impact on Their Career/Life
The suspension is the first public blemish on a tenure that had made Griffith the defining figure of Columbia women’s basketball: a former Lion who returned home, became the program’s all-time wins leader, and delivered its first NCAA Tournament victory and a WBIT title. The immediate cost is competitive — missing three winnable non-conference games that could matter for an at-large bid, with assistants running the bench while she watches from elsewhere — and the longer-term cost is reputational, a public-record finding that her interactions with players did not always meet the university’s expectations, sitting permanently alongside her players’ public statement that the findings were “not indicative” of their experience under her.