The Minority Coaches Association announced the NCAA Division III Coaches of the Year list on Monday evening. Wittenberg men's basketball lead assistant Danny Ellis earned the fifth spot on the list, after his second season with the Tigers.
In his first two seasons with the Tigers, Ellis has worked with the Wittenberg post players helping develop Connor Seipel and James Johnson to achieve All-NCAC honors. Ellis has been heavily involved in the recruiting process of the last two classes, taking an emphasis on the Southwest Ohio area. 2019-20 witnessed the Tigers going 28-2 overall and 17-1 in conference action. The Tigers started the season on a 14 game winning streak.
"Danny has been a big part of our success since his arrival," said Head Coach Matt Croci, "Our players and coaches really respect and trust him. He's been instrumental in recruiting our last two classes and we look for many great things from him in the future."
Ellis previously spent four seasons at Berry University, assisting in all aspects of coaching, including the development of guard play, shooting, and day-to-day operations. In addition, Ellis assisted with the program's transition to NCAA Division III. During his final year at Berry, he helped the Vikings to an (SAA) Tournament Championship and the program's first-ever appearance in the NCAA National Tournament. Ellis, a native of Springfield, Ohio, started his college coaching career during the 2010-2011 season as an assistant coach at Thomas More College, his alma mater, he helped the Saints to a 71-39 record over a four-year period. During that time at Thomas More, the team had back-to-back 20-win seasons capped off by a 23-5 record in 2012-2013, setting the school record for most wins in a season.He also helped the Saints to the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Tournament championship game each of his last three seasons. Ellis also helped mentor and develop D'Carlo Hayes at Thomas More, an All-American guard and PAC Player-of-the-Year while having the privilege to work alongside two-time PAC Coach-of-the-Year Jeff Rogers at both Thomas More College and Berry College.
The Minority Coaches Association (MCA) is a non-profit organization whose primary purpose is to foster the growth and development of ethnic minorities at all levels of sports both nationally and internationally. The organization is focused on improving the employment opportunities and professional development of ethnic male and female minority coaches in A.A.U, high school, collegiate, and professional sports.