LaVall Jordan Names Lowery And Vergollo As Assistant Coaches
UWM Press Release...
LaVall Jordan Names Lowery And Vergollo As Assistant Coaches
MILWAUKEE (April 14, 2016) - Head coach LaVall Jordan has announced that Omar Lowery and Will Vergollo have been named assistant coaches for the Milwaukee men's basketball team.
"I am thrilled to have Omar joining our staff," Jordan said. "He is from the area and knows the state and Midwest well from a recruiting standpoint. I consider him to be a great role model for our student-athletes. He also has an outstanding track record in skill development, especially with post players."
Lowery has spent the past two seasons as an assistant at Sam Houston State University, helping direct the team to 44 victories and postseason appearances each year.
Lowery has an extensive coaching background in NCAA Division I basketball that includes a season at San Jose State as well as four years as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Cal Poly and three seasons at Texas State.
At both San Jose State and Cal Poly, Lowery was heavily involved in recruiting and was also in charge of skill development for the post players.
Cal Poly basketball saw a new level of success while Lowery was there, setting a program record for Big West victories and a new school record for home wins in one season. The team also posted the program's first-ever win over a ranked opponent when it toppled No. 11 UCLA, 70-68, on the road. He molded Chris Eversley into a First-Team All-Big West performer and Malik Love, Jr., was tabbed the 2011 Big West Co-Freshman of the Year.
While at Texas State (2006-09), he helped recruit seven players ranked among the Top 40 Texas high school prospects and the team increased its victory total each of three seasons Lowery was on the bench.
As a collegiate player, Lowery began his career at South Plains College before transferring to Concordia University Wisconsin, where he earned All-Lake Michigan Conference First-Team honors. He helped Concordia qualify for the 2000 NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time in school history after setting a school record by averaging 16.3 points per game.
A Wisconsin native, Lowery graduated from CUW in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education. He received his master's degree in sports administration from Eastern New Mexico in 2006.
Vergollo just completed his third year as the video analyst for the University of Michigan men's basketball program. In that capacity, he managed and assisted the entire basketball staff with the video operations for the program. He headed up the film exchange program, coordinated the recording of opponent games and assisted with preparation for scouting reports.
"I am also very excited about Will's addition to the staff," Jordan said. "He is a tireless worker and a great student of the game. His energy and enthusiasm are contagious and he is a relationship guy who will quickly connect with our players and recruits. We've worked extremely close together, so he is aware of the things we want to execute both on and off the court."
In addition, he led a managerial staff responsible for the filming of all U-M practices and games, as well as assisted with the organization and running of Michigan basketball camps and the U-M coaching clinic. During his three seasons on the Wolverines' staff, the program reached the NCAA Tournament twice, including a trip to the NCAA Elite Eight in 2013-14.
Vergollo was also an assistant coach under first-year head coach Patrick Beilein at West Virginia Wesleyan in 2012-13. Prior to his time at West Virginia Wesleyan, Vergollo had spent six years with the Wolverine basketball program. He spent two years as U-M's graduate manager (2010-12), earning his master's degree in higher education administration and leadership from U-M in 2012. Before his graduate work, he spent four years as a student manager, including the last two as the head manager.
Vergollo completed his bachelor's degree in sports management from U-M in 2010. During his undergrad work, he was part of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars for four years and was the winner of the University Presidential Inaugural Conference Award in 2009. A native of Ann Arbor, Vergollo was the first recipient of the Joel Portnoy Outstanding Student Manager Scholarship in 2009 and received the honor again in 2010. He also served as a U-M Camp Administrator for the basketball team summer camps for five years.
