Ellerbe hires two assistants

Lorenzo Neely and Tom Sorboro may not be able to help Michigan's frontcourt, but the two are all Michigan coach Brian Ellerbe was able to sign this spring.

After not gaining any new commitments from recruits during the spring signing period, Ellerbe hired for two assistants.

Stromile Swift, Louisiana's Mr. Basketball, and Tony Akins, Georgia's Mr. Basketball, both opted to stay close to home, passing up Michigan for Louisiana State and Georgia Tech, respectively.

So, despite the need for a center and a power forward, Ellerbe hired an assistant coach and an administrative assistant.

"I'm very pleased to have two impressive young individuals join our staff," Ellerbe said in a released statement.

Neely, a Detroit native who spent his entire collegiate basketball career at Eastern Michigan, as both a player and a coach, will join Scott Trost as an assistant coach.

"Lorenzo is a very enthusiastic person who in my opinion has a very bright future in this profession," Ellerbe said. "Plus, he is from the area and has strong ties to the city of Detroit."

But Neely will not be able to use those ties to help recruiting. Neely is not replacing Brian Dutcher, Ellerbe's top assistant who resigned May 5. Instead, Ellerbe will hire another assistant to take over Dutcher's role. This means that Neely, as the third assistant, will not be allowed to recruit off-campus - one of Dutcher's chief responsibilities. Instead, Neely will coach from the bench during games, help run practices and assist in on-campus recruiting.

At Eastern Michigan, Neely led the Eagles to two NCAA Tournament appearances as a player, once reaching the Sweet Sixteen. After coaching at Redford High School for three years, Neely returned to Eastern Michigan to coach under Ben Braun in 1995.

Tom Sorboro's position, administrative assistant, is a new one to the Michigan basketball program. Sorboro, making his second stint as an Ellerbe assistant, will handle the day-to-day operations of the program, such as making team travel arrangements and organizing camps and clinics.

"Tom brings a unique background and has a lot of different skills that will allow him to excel" as an administrative assistant, Ellerbe said.

Sorboro, a graduate of Bowling Green, was an assistant coach under Ellerbe at Loyola (Md.) College during the 1996-97 season, before Ellerbe left Loyola for Michigan.

05-26-98