University of Maryland Eastern Shore Men's Basketball

Cleo Hill, Jr. has served as the head men's basketball coach at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore since June of 2024. In his first year at UMES, Hill assembled one of the toughest schedules in the country with contests against Illinois, Arkansas, Vanderbilt and defending national champion UConn. While focusing on developing the program in the first year, Hill was able to raise funds to dramatically improve the program's locker rooms and add additional resources for the student-athletes. A veteran coach, Hill came to UMES with 17 seasons of head coaching experience along with a variety of assistant coaching roles and an impressive collegiate playing career at North Carolina Central University. Hill spent the previous six seasons as the head coach of the Rams at Winston-Salem State University, leading them to multiple CIAA championships, NCAA tournament appearances, and earning CIAA Coach of the Year honors. Prior to WSSU, Hill served as head coach at Shaw University for seven seasons (2008-2015), compiling a 116-67 record and achieving a 27-4 season in 2011-2012 with an undefeated CIAA regular season. His head coaching career began at Cheyney University (2003-2008). Before becoming a head coach, Hill held assistant coaching positions at Shaw University, the University of Nebraska, Mount Zion Christian Academy (where he coached future NBA Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady), and Orange High School. Hill is a graduate of North Carolina Central University where he earned South At

Coach Chuck Ellis joined University of Maryland Eastern Shore Head Coach Cleo Hill's staff in July of 2024. Prior to arriving at UMES, Ellis completed five successful seasons at Holy Family University. During his tenure on the men's basketball coaching staff, Ellis made significant strides to improve the Tigers' performance and academic trajectory. His successes include coaching three All-CACC Players, four CACC All-Academic Players, an Academic All-District Team Player, and a team that maintained a GPA of 3.0 and above for the 2022-2024 seasons. Coach Ellis joined the Holy Family Tigers after spending the previous three seasons as an assistant coach at Rutgers-Camden University from 2016-2019, where he served as recruiting assistant. At RCU, Ellis both prepared scouting reports and conducted practices for the Scarlet Knights. Prior to joining Rutgers-Camden, he spent four seasons at Immaculata University from 2012-2016. Ellis' passionate leadership and fundamental skills development philosophy helped them reach postseason play for five consecutive seasons. Coach Ellis helped recruit and develop five All-Conference Players and 17 Winter/Spring All-Academic Players. During the 2015-16 season, his team received the CSAC Team Academic Award. Ellis began his coaching career as the head assistant coach at his alma mater, Cheyney University of PA, from 2007-2012. While at Cheyney, Ellis honed his skills in scouting and recruiting student athletes and became adept at preparing seaso

Delorian Heard joins Head Coach Cleo Hill's University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball program as an assistant coach for the 2024-25 season. Heard grew up in Detroit, Michigan and fell in love with the game of basketball at a young age. Delorian's passion for the game was handed down to him from his father, NBA Scout/Executive Rodney Heard. Heard is a true student of the game, earning himself a spot on the 2009 Team Detroit AAU National Championship team. After high school, Heard went on to play one season for NJCAA Gillette College in Wyoming before transferring to Redlands Community College in Oklahoma, where he earned an Associates of Art degree. Upon leaving Redlands Community College, Heard utilized his skills to help train high school and junior high athletes. His keen ability to assess athletic skills and develop basketball players at the grade school level caught the attention of Doc Sadler. The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) Head Men's Basketball Coach asked Heard to join the staff as both a student assistant and team manager for the Golden Eagles from 2014-2016. During his tenure in Hattiesburg, Delorian learned key coaching skills, enhanced his ability to build trust, connected with athletes, and further understood the complexities of being a student athlete. In addition, education continued to remain at the forefront for Delorian at USM, earning his Bachelor of Arts. Heard would go on to do a three-year stint as an assistant at Camden County C

Lance Beckwith has served as the assistant coach of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore men's basketball program since July of 2024. Beckwith brings a wealth of basketball experience to UMES. He worked with current UMES head coach Cleo Hill at Winston Salem State as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator from 2018 until Spring 2024. The Rams experienced an elite run of success during the period that Beckwith was on campus. In five seasons at WSSU, the Rams won 90 games, took home a pair of Southern Division titles, won two Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) championships, and were the victors of the 2022 Gary Miller Classic, 2023 Chris Paul Invitational, and NBA All-Star x HBCU Classic. For their excellence on the hardwood, Beckwith was recognized as a member of the Coaching Staff of the Year alongside the rest of the Winston Salem State coaches in both the 2019-2020 and 2023-2024 seasons. In addition to wins and accolades on the court, Beckwith has excelled at helping student-athletes reach their full potential. With a special focus on developing guards, Beckwith has coached 12 players who have gone on to play basketball professionally. In terms of player accolades, two CIAA All-Rookie players, one CIAA Defensive MVP, six HBCU Boxtorow All-Americans, and five straight seasons of CIAA First Team Selections have all developed under Beckwith's tutelage at WSSU. Before joining the Rams' coaching staff, Beckwith served as a basketball trainer in the R