By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech men's basketball head coach John Pelphrey made the final addition to his staff for the 2019-20 season recently, with the hiring of Marcus King as an assistant coach.
King joins the Golden Eagles after spending the past 11 years as an assistant coach at Lee College in Baytown, Texas.
"I want to thank Coach Pelphrey for this opportunity," King expressed. "His passion for assisting the growth of young men and teaching the fundamentals of life success through basketball are what really drew me to this position. Additionally, his knowledge of the business of college basketball and his desire to help each member of his staff grow individually and professionally are second to none."
"We are very excited to have Marcus here with us," Pelphrey said. "He is going to bring a lot of experience from being a leader, mentoring young men, recruiting young men and coaching. Like [assistant coach] Andre [Bell], he spent quite a bit of time at Lee College and really put his heart and soul into that program. He and Coach Bell both have had a lot of opportunities, so we feel very fortunate that they have believed in us here at Tennessee Tech to take another step in their coaching careers."
In his time at Lee, King served as the team's recruiting coordinator and academic counselor in addition to his duties as assistant coach. He helped 50 players advance to four-year institutions in 11 years, including 75 percent (39 players) of them headed to Division I programs. Roughly 30 percent of those 50 players also went on to sign professional contracts.
On the academic side, he saw an 80 percent graduation rate from his players, including 87 percent of those eventually earning a bachelor's degree. He also helped develop and maintain the program's budget and plan and facilitate team travel.
In 2013, Lee earned its first ever trip to the NJCAA National Tournament.
From 2006-08, King worked as an assistant coach at Eastern New Mexico University where he was also the chief recruiter, director of scouting and strength and conditioning specialist. In two seasons of conducting pregame workouts and skill development, he helped produce two All-Conference guards.
Prior to his stint at Eastern New Mexico, he was an assistant coach at Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kan. from 2002-04. Serving as the team's primary recruiter, King helped produce four All-Conference guards and eight players who advanced on to Division I institutions.
During the 2001-02 season, King was an assistant at Jacksonville University, helping the Dolphins to an 18-win season. While supervising skill development and academics, he helped produce an All-Conference guard.
Before his time at Jacksonville, he spent the 1999-00 and 2000-01 seasons as an assistant at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo. King was the team's director of recruiting, scouting and strength and conditioning, eventually signing seven players that combined to earn two All-Conference honors, three Conference Player of the Week honors, one Newcomer of the Year award and one All-American honor.
In his tenure at Lincoln, the team posted 20 wins, the most in 25 years, and saw attendance rise 750 percent. The squad also led the conference in scoring (88 points per game), scoring margin (plus-10), field goal percentage (48.9), free throw percentage (69.9) and steals (9.04 per game).
"I have been fortunate to coach a very talented and diverse group of young men during my career," King said. "They taught me the power of communication. My focus is being a daily resource for the players and each member of our staff for collective success of the program. I am here to provide support and assistance to Coach Pelphrey in all aspects of Tennessee Tech basketball."
He was a graduate assistant at Northeastern Oklahoma State University in 1999 and got his start in coach as an assistant at Connors State College in Warner, Okla. during the 1998-99 season. At Connors State, the team ranked as high as third nationally in the NJCAA polls, sporting one All-American and seven players moving on to Division I programs.
A native of Muskogee, Okla., King was a senior member of the undefeated 1993 Class 3A state championship team at Beggs High School.
King earned his associate's degree from Connors State College in 1996 and his bachelor's in political science from Northeastern Oklahoma State in 1999. He finished up his master's in sports administration in 2014 at Eastern New Mexico University.
"I'm just excited to watch the growth and development of the players and program," King replied when asked what he was most excited about for this upcoming season. "Helping coach Pelphrey build a culture of basketball that Tennessee Tech University and Cookeville will enjoy and embrace."
