Indiana assistant who’s also a former Division II coach of year interviews at Kent State

Todd Starkey, an Indiana University assistant and a former Division II national coach of the year, is the fourth candidate known to interview for the Kent State women’s basketball head coaching job.

The Record-Courier reported that Starkey, former head coach at Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, N.C., visited KSU on Wednesday.

Starkey joined Indiana, which was 21-12 last season, two years ago after nine years as head coach at Lenoir-Rhyne. He was part of the staff of Teri Moren, who became head coach at Indiana when Curt Miller resigned unexpectedly for personal reasons in 2014. Miller had been the highly successful Bowling Green coach before going to Indiana.

At Lenoir-Rhyne, Starkey was a four-time coach of the year in the Southern Atlantic Conference. His teams were 165-95 over nine years and 124-52 over his last six. His best year was 2008-09, when Lenoir-Ryne went 27-5 and advanced to the regional semifinals of the Division II tournament. He was national coach of the year that season in Division II.

Earlier Starkey was an assistant for the Lenoir-Rhyne men’s team and an assistant for the men’s team at Montreat College, an NAIA school in North Carolina. He is a Montreat graduate.

 

Starkey is the second person to interview for the KSU job this week. Maria Marchesano, head coach at Division II Walsh University, was on campus Tuesday.

Last weekend Youngstown State coach John Barnes turned down the Kent State job to remain at YSU. Reports also have said an unnamed head coach turned down Kent State to take another Division I head coaching job.

The new coach will replace Danny O’Banion, whose contract was not renewed after going 21-98 in four seasons.

Barring transfers, all members of last year’s women’s team will return to Kent State next season. The team, which went 6-23, had no seniors.