The College of Maryland Japanese Shore despatched a shockwave all through HBCU basketball with the announcement of latest head coach rent Cleo Hill, Jr. The now former Winston-Salem State College head basketball coach helped return WSSU to its former championship glory. The son of one of the vital legendary gamers in HBCU basketball historical past, Cleo Hill Sr., Cleo Hill, Jr. introduced a CIAA championship banner again to one in all HBCU basketball’s most historic applications. Beneath is a press launch from Winston-Salem State College on coach Hill’s departure and the college’s subsequent steps to discover a new head coach.
Courtesy of Winston-Salem State Athletics
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Cleo Hill, Jr. present head males’s basketball coach is transitioning to develop into the following head males’s basketball coach on the College of Maryland Japanese Shore (UMES) introduced on Saturday (June 1).
“I need to thank Coach Hill for returning to his roots from childhood to steer the WSSU Males’s Basketball Crew and etching his place within the historical past books of WSSU Males’s Basketball whereas preserving the Legacy, Excellence, Traditions, and Championship success of those that got here earlier than him,” stated Director of Athletics, Etienne Thomas. “I’m grateful to have had the chance to serve with somebody who put the well-being of the student-athletes first, was coachable, and was keen to pivot. Coach Hill and his employees ensured the Males’s Basketball student-athletes understood their place on this world and the expectations for attaining holistic success, the worth of a faculty training, and cultivated respect for the brotherhood on the core of Males’s Basketball into every of his groups. I’ll miss seeing you look to the far wall of the Gaines Heart earlier than tip-off, however we all know new traditions and pre-game rituals are on the horizon. Coach Hill, you’ll at all times be Ramily and have a house within the C.E. Gaines Heart. From my first championship ever as an AD in 2020 to the ultimate hurrah of the NBA All-star weekend with this yr’s staff, you and your employees understood the vision-protect the legacy. Job effectively carried out!”
Cleo Hill, Jr. was named the ninth head coach of the Winston-Salem State College males’s basketball program within the spring of 2018 and wasted no time main the staff into the following chapter within the storied historical past of Rams Males’s Basketball. The son of one of the vital legendary gamers at school historical past, Cleo Hill Sr., Hill Jr wasted no time creating a robust place of his personal within the historical past of Rams basketball. Hill led the Rams to a 19-9 total document throughout the 2023-24 season, the perfect total document within the CIAA, after teaching the Rams to an ideal 6-0 sweep of the Northern division. The Rams ranked within the D2CSC Atlantic rankings eight instances, had two gamers (Jaylen Alston and Isaac Parson) named HBCU Participant of the Week, noticed Imajae Dodd earn a number of CIAA Defensive Weekly Awards, Hill named the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Affiliation (CIAA) Males’s Coach of the 12 months.
Below Hill this yr the Rams scored 70.3 factors per recreation, completed second within the CIAA in scoring protection averaging 63.3 factors per recreation, and first in scoring margin (7.5). Hill and the Rams completed second in area objective share (0.457), first in opponent area objective share (0.395), second in staff 3-point area objective share (0.330), fourth in 3-point area targets made, and first in staff defensive rebounds (26.7).Hill guided the Rams within the 2022-23 season to develop into the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Affiliation (CIAA) Match Champions and secured the Computerized Bid to Division II post-season play. Participant standouts below Hill’s tutelage have been CIAA Match MVP Jaylen Alston, and All-Convention decide Jaylon Gibson. Throughout the 22-23 season, the Rams noticed nice success throughout non-conference play, together with competitors vs. PSAC regional opponents after they gained the Gary Miller Traditional in Pennsylvania.
In his second season with the Rams, Hill led the staff to its first CIAA Championship in eight years with a 31-25 total document. Along with the staff’s event championship, the Rams additionally claimed a share of the 2019-20 CIAA Southern Division Championship. He was additionally named the 2019-20 CIAA Males’s Basketball Coach of the 12 months and helped the staff to rank seventh within the nation in scoring protection and first within the CIAA and led a pair of Rams, Robert Colon, and William Crandell, to earn All-CIAA honors throughout his time. The Rams additionally made their first journey to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Area Match since 2013.
We want Coach Hill effectively in his future endeavors.
Eric Wilson, affiliate head coach, will function the Appearing Head Coach for the Rams as a nationwide seek for a brand new head coach begins instantly.
Info relating to the posting shall be accessible subsequent week through www.wssu.edu.
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