CCU men’s basketball coach Cliff Ellis is retiring. Here’s what we know
CCU men’s basketball head coach Cliff Ellis is stepping away from the sport, according to multiple reports from CBS Sports and ESPN.
Ellis, who has the eighth most wins of any men’s college basketball coach, will leave CCU during its current 2023-24 season. Coastal is 3-5 so far this year.
The news came after a series of developments Tuesday, Dec. 6, 203. At 5:30 p.m. EST, the Coastal Carolina Athletic Department issued a press release announcing the athletic department was holding a press conference Dec. 6.
The email did not say why a press conference was being held, but later that night college basketball reporter for CBS Sports Jon Rothstein broke the news of Ellis’ retirement. The Messenger’s sports reporter, Jeff Goodman further added via X, formerly known as Twitter, that CCU assistant Benny Moss would take over on an interim basis.
The Chants had a mixed record during Ellis’ tenure at Coastal. While part of the Big South Conference, CCU made several trips to the NIT tournament as well as the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament.
Since joining the Sun Belt Conference in 2016-17 though, the Chants have not had the same level of success, having three winning seasons in eight during that time span. Ellis went 297-228 during his tenure at Coastal, the most wins at any program Ellis coached at during his long career.
This story was originally published December 6, 2023 at 9:13 AM.
