Eric Murphy announced as Hilltopper Basketball assistant coach
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU men’s basketball has announced the hiring of Eric Murphy to join the staff as an assistant coach under head coach Hank Plona. Murphy joins the Hilltopper Basketball staff after serving as head coach at Florida SouthWestern State College in Fort Myers, Florida for six years.
“I am very excited about the addition of Eric Murphy to our coaching staff,” Plona said. “Eric has coached and developed countless successful Division I and professional basketball players and has a great way of helping players improve and be the best versions of themselves. He has been around winning his whole career and will help us continue to have the success we expect to have moving forward.”
Murphy was instrumental in helping build the Florida SouthWestern program into a national contender at the junior college level. Murphy joined the team’s staff for its inaugural season in 2016-17 and spent two seasons as an assistant before taking over as head coach in 2018.
Murphy posted a 143-34 overall record (.829 winning percentage) as head coach for the Bucs. While at the helm in Fort Myers, he notched a 61-15 record in conference league action while helping send 34 former Bucs to the next level, including current NBA guard Keon Ellis of the Sacramento Kings.
Murphy was named the Suncoast Conference Coach of the Year in 2020. He led the Bucs to Suncoast Conference Championships from 2018-2020 while guiding the team to two NJCAA National Tournament appearances.
Prior to his time at Florida SouthWestern, Murphy served as an assistant coach at Vincennes University, Wabash Valley College and the University of Northern Colorado. Murphy began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Slippery Rock University.
Murphy is the first assistant coach to be announced by Plona for the Tops’ upcoming 2024-25 season.
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