Scott Combs, who has extensive head coaching and administrative experience and a broad knowledge of the Ohio Valley Conference, has been named assistant coach for the Morehead State men’s basketball program.
Combs joins the Eagles after a successful six-year stint as head coach and associate athletic director at Martin Methodist in Tennessee. He also spent 12 seasons as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Austin Peay.
“I am so excited to add a veteran coach who has been a head coach and had success,” said MSU head coach Preston Spradlin. “He has helped take teams to NCAA tournaments and recruited all-conference players and was a good player in his own right in our league. He will do a great job with our big men, help construct our schedule and help with the overall organization of our program.”
Combs led the Martin Methodist RedHawks for six seasons, winning 62 percent of games (119-72) and advancing to three NAIA national tournaments.
“My family and I are extremely excited to join the Morehead State basketball family. This is a tremendous opportunity and I am honored to be part of an outstanding staff and serve this great institution,” said Combs. “I am beyond thrilled to merge up with Coach Spradlin and look forward to sharing his vision and to help recruit, coach and develop high character student-athletes. I am ready to work with our guys and help them achieve success on the court and in the classroom, and in the community. I look forward to making Morehead State basketball the best that it can be.”
In 2014-15 the RedHawks won 30 games for just the second time in school history, winning the Southern States Conference Tournament and advancing to the NAIA National Tournament final eight. The team finished No. 7 in the national poll and featured two All-Americans, three all-conference performers. MMC finished in the top 10 in the NAIA in eight statistical categories.
Combs guided the RedHawks to a 21-11 overall record and a near perfect 9-1 mark in the last year of the TranSouth Athletic Conference in his first season at MMC in 2012-13. Combs also guided the RedHawks to the NAIA National Tournament, where his squad advanced to the round of 16. The RedHawks closed the season with a 12-game winning streak in the regular season. For his efforts, Combs was on a short list for the Tennessee Sportswriters Association’s Coach of the Year Award. In addition to himself, several NCAA Division I coaches filled the ballot for the prestigious award, including Memphis’ Josh Pastner, Belmont’s Rick Byrd and Middle Tennessee State’s Kermit Davis.
During his 12 seasons at Austin Peay assisting OVC Hall of Fame coach Dave Loos, Combs helped lead the Govs to 20-plus win seasons six times and back-to-back OVC championships on two occasions. The 2002-03 and 2007-08 teams advanced to the NCAA tournament while the 2003-04 club finished with a perfect 16-0 league mark and won a game in the NIT. He was also a part of wins over Tennessee and Memphis. During his time at APSU, Combs accumulated five OVC Championship rings and helped the Govs qualify for a postseason event seven times.
Combs played his final two seasons (1997-99) at Austin Peay after transferring from Missouri, where he played from 1994-96. At Missouri, Combs tallied a season-high 12 points at Kansas. In addition, he was a member of a Missouri squad that played in the 1995 NCAA tournament, where they defeated Indiana before bowing out on a last-second shot by UCLA.
A Lebanon, Ind., native, Combs was a standout at Paoli High School, scoring a school record 1,958 points, ranking him 31st all time in the state. He was the runner-up for Indiana Mr. Basketball in 1994 and was selected to play on the prestigious Indiana All-Star team. His AAU career resulted in him being named All-American six times, and Combs is one of the select few who has played and coached in both the NCAA and NIT tournaments.
At APSU, Combs posted a 4.0 grade-point average and earned CoSIDA District IV Academic All-District while averaging nearly 10 points and six rebounds per outing as a senior. He served as President of the Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) and graduated with his bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and education. He earned his Master’s in Sport Administration from Austin Peay.
Combs and his fiancé Ashley have a daughter, Chandler Kate, who is nine.
