ITTA BENA, Miss. (April 1, 2019) - Former Mississippi Valley State assistant basketball coach, Eric Strothers, was named the Interim Head Coach by Director of Athletics Dianthia Ford-Kee on Monday.
 
Stothers, a native of Vicksburg, Miss. served on the Delta Devils coaching staff for the last five seasons. As an assistant coach, Strothers responsibilities included recruiting, scouting, managing the student-athlete academic program, supervising study hall, directing the off-season conditioning program and various administrative duties with the team.
 
"I would like to thank Mrs. Ford-Kee for giving me the opportunity to become interim head coach until the national search is complete," Strothers said.
 
Prior to MVSU, Strothers served as an assistant coach at his alma mater Jackson State from 1995-2015. At JSU, Strothers helped lead the Tigers to three NCAA Tournament appearances (1997, 2000, 2007). In September 2018, he was inducted into the Jackson State Athletics Hall of Fame and then soon after he was inducted into the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Hall of Fame in December 2018.
 
During the summer of 2009, Strothers was named one of the best mid-major assistant coaches in NCAA Division I basketball by the collegeinsider.com. Then, in 2010, he was tabbed the SWAC Assistant Basketball Coach of the Year. Strothers has recruited a plethora of talent including former NBA guard Trey Johnson, who starred at JSU and was named the SWAC MVP.
 
As a student-athlete Strothers was a first-team All-SWAC forward who led JSU to a regular season conference title, a SWAC tournament title and a chance to play in the NCAA tournament play-in game against Coastal Carolina. He was voted the team's Most Valuable Player his junior and senior seasons and garnered a SWAC Player-of-the-Week and Black Entertainment Television (BET) Player-of-the-Week honors during his senior campaign. His 17.4 points per game average during his senior year put him in the Jackson State 1,000 point Club as he finished his collegiate career with 1,251 total points.
 
Strothers earned a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice and a master's degree in Physical Education, both from Jackson State. He was drafted in the fourth round by the Sioux Falls franchise of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) and played in the exhibition season for the South Dakota team before deciding to play overseas. Strothers started in the Holland Pro League for a season before playing in Hong Kong where he led his team to second place in division play, the team's best finish.