Jon Sanderson resigns as Michigan strength and conditioning coach after leaving basketball program

Jon Sanderson has resigned as a strength and conditioning coach at Michigan, two-plus months after he stopped working with the men's basketball program under coach Juwan Howard.

"We appreciate Jon's contributions over the years and wish him the best moving forward," school spokesman Kurt Svoboda said Friday.

A message seeking comment was left with Sanderson.

Howard, who had heart surgery in September, returned to his head coaching duties in mid-December after a review of an incident involving several individuals during a team practice. Sanderson did not join the team on the sideline for its Dec. 10 game at Iowa, and was not on the team's bench in subsequent games.

Athletic director Warde Manuel said in a Dec. 15 statement that a "thorough internal review" did not uncover anything that warranted disciplinary action for anyone involved.

Michigan, Howard and Sanderson have not shared specific details of the review or what led to it.

Former coach John Beilein hired Sanderson in 2009, and Howard retained him a decade later. He previously was the strength and conditioning coach at Clemson for its men's and women's basketball programs and worked at Marshall.

Sanderson played basketball at Ohio State, where he was the starting small forward on its Final Four team in 1999, and finished his college career at Ohio University. His son, Jonathan, is a highly touted sophomore point guard at Saline High School, which is near Michigan's campus.

The Wolverines are 8-21 — one short of a single-season record for losses — after losing by 30 points at Rutgers on Thursday night for their sixth straight loss and 10th setback in 11 games.

___ Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here ___ AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball