Jake Lorbach joined the EKU men’s basketball program as video coordinator in the fall of 2023. In the summer of 2024, Lorbach moved into the assistant coach/director of scouting position.
In 2024-25, Lorbach helped the Colonels win 18 games and stay in the running for a second straight Atlantic Sun Conference Championship up until the final week of the season.
EKU beat East Tennessee, led Clemson by four with less than 13 minutes left in the game and nearly beat Louisville during the non-conference portion of the schedule. The Cardinals had to hit a last second shot to beat EKU by one. Once conference season started, the Colonels put together their longest conference winning streak in 59 years. An 8-game ASUN winning streak allowed the team to climb to the top of the league standings, beating eventual champion Lipscomb twice during that run. The team also had three wins against two more postseason tournament teams – Florida Gulf Coast (2) and Queens (1).
During the 2024-25 season, the Colonels ranked 14th in NCAA Division I in offensive rebounds, 25th in turnovers committed, 25th in turnover margin, 33rd in steals and 37th in 3-pointers made.
Devontae Blanton earned first team All-ASUN honors and was a candidate for ASUN Player of the Year after putting together a season in which he was the only player in the conference ranked among the top-15 in points, rebounds, assists, steals and field goal percentage. George Kimble III joined the program after one season in Division II and became a second team all-conference selection. Mayar Wol was chosen as the ASUN Sixth Man of the Year.
In his first season, Lorbach was part of a staff that helped EKU capture the 2023-24 ASUN Conference Regular Season Championship. It was the first regular season conference title for the Colonels in 45 years (1979). The Colonels won their first seven conference games, which tied the best start to conference play in program history. No squad had started the league schedule with seven straight wins since 1959-60.
The team set a new program mark for blocks in a game with 13 against Troy on Nov. 27 and blocks in a season with 190. EKU was fifth in the nation in blocks per game, 14th in rebounds per game (40.13), 17th in offensive rebounds per game (13.23) and 29th in scoring (80.8/game).
Isaiah Cozart was chosen as the ASUN Player of the Year, the ASUN Defensive Player of the Year, First Team All-ASUN, First Team NABC All-District and played in the Reese’s Division I All-Star Game in Phoenix during the Final Four. Following the season, Cozart was selected as a finalist for the 2024 Lou Henson National Mid-Major Player of the Year Award and the 2024 Lefty Driesell National Defensive Player of the Year Award. Leland Walker earned First Team All-ASUN honors and Second Team NABC All-District recognition. Blanton earned Third Team All-ASUN honors.
Lorbach spent the 2022-23 season as an assistant coach at Kirkwood Community College. He helped the team reach the region championship game and coached an All-American and two first team all-region picks.
In 2021-22, Lorbach served as an assistant at the University of Colorado Springs. He helped guide the program to a 21-9 record and a spot in the conference tournament semifinals.
From 2019 to 2021, Lorbach was an assistant coach for St. Edwards High School in Ohio. He helped the team record a 40-5 record over two seasons, a No. 1 state ranking and a No. 14 national ranking. Lorbach was a graduate assistant at Cleveland State during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.
Lorbach was a 4-time Academic All-Big Ten selection as a student-athlete at Ohio State from 2012 to 2016. He began his time as a Buckeye as a walk-on before earning a full scholarship in 2014-15. OSU captured the 2013 Big Ten Championship and reached the NCAA Elite 8.
Lorbach earned a bachelor’s of science degree in human ecology at Ohio State in May of 2016.
