Fox adds Pearson to new UGA basketball staff

New Georgia basketball coach Mark Fox has hired Philip Pearson as an assistant.

“He’s recruited in the SEC, he’s recruited well in the SEC,” Fox said. “He’s familiar with the area and the region. He’s had a great deal of success everywhere he’s been.”

An official announcement will be made later today. Pearson joins Kwanza Johnson, whom Fox brought with him from Nevada, on staff. Fox said he’s going to wait a while before hiring a third assistant.

Pearson went 6-7 as an interim coach at Alabama. He succeeded Mark Gottfried, who resigned in the middle of the season.

When Alabama hired Anthony Grant, Pearson wasn’t kept on staff.

Fox said he received hundreds of text messages from people interested in working at Georgia within the first 36 hours after he was named the Bulldogs coach.

“It’s amazing how fast your number gets out there,” Fox said. “It’s a compliment to Georgia, the amount of interest people have had in working with us.”