Bio

Former Mississippi State University guard Billy Begley begins his 11th season as head men’s basketball coach at East Mississippi Community College after previously serving as an assistant coach for the Lions.

With a 10-year EMCC head coaching record of 153-103 (.598) overall and 75-54 (.581) in regular-season conference/division play, Begley’s Lions have made eight postseason tournament appearances, including a pair of conference tournament championships. After Begley’s 2018-19 EMCC squad captured the school’s first conference championship in men’s hoops since the 1930s, the Lions’ 2021-22 team claimed the program’s second tourney title in four years by posting a 21-7 overall record and achieving a No. 7 national ranking during the season. Following a second straight 20-win season and repeat 10-4 conference mark while advancing to the 2023 NJCAA Region 23 Tournament semifinals, EMCC earned a sixth consecutive regional tournament appearance.

Begley’s success at EMCC is also apparent in the classroom, as the Lions have earned NJCAA All-Academic Team honors each of the last three years. The 2023-24 EMCC squad tied for NJCAA Men’s Basketball Academic Team of the Year honors by posting a 3.60 collective team grade point average.

Begley previously enjoyed instant success with the Lions upon returning to the Scooba campus in 2015. After spending two seasons as an assistant coach at Troy (Ala.) University, Begley took over for former EMCC head coach Mark White and proceeded to guide the 2015-16 Lions to their fifth NJCAA Tournament appearance during a seven-year span. Their 21-8 record that season included a berth in the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament championship game.

Begley’s prior three-year stay as an assistant coach at East Mississippi resulted in collective records of 68-19 (.782) overall and 33-3 (.917) in division play en route to claiming successive NJCAA Region 23 Tournament championships and regular-season division titles during the 2010-11, 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons. Along with the Lions earning a pair of season-ending NJCAA Division I Top 20 national rankings during that span, Begley helped develop NJCAA All-Americans Jarekious Bradley, DJ Evans, Colin Borchert, and Deonte Alexander.

During his 13 total seasons at EMCC, Begley has had several players who have participated at the university level and professionally, including current international pros Avery Woodson, Juan Davis Jr., Darrious Agnew, Donte Powers, and Markedric Bell. Nine players from the Lions’ 2018-19 conference championship club went on to compete at the four-year level. EMCC also recently produced back-to-back honorable mention NJCAA All-Americans with former All-WAC forward Jakorie Smith at Tarleton State and guard Blake Butler in 2022 and 2023, respectively.

During his two seasons as an assistant coach on Phil Cunningham’s Troy basketball staff, Begley was instrumental in securing consecutive talent-laden recruiting classes that helped propel the Trojans to a 2017 NCAA Tournament appearance.

Begley initially came to East Mississippi after having spent the 2009-10 campaign as a volunteer men’s assistant basketball coach at Nicholls State University.

With his bachelor’s (business management) and master’s (MBA) degrees from Mississippi State, Begley served as a three-time MSU team co-captain for coaching veteran Rick Stansbury. Begley was a part of three NCAA Tournament teams, an NIT semifinalist club, one Southeastern Conference championship squad and three SEC Western Division title teams during his five-year (2004-08) collegiate playing career for the Bulldogs. The following year at his alma mater as Stansbury’s graduate assistant coach, Begley added an SEC Tournament crown and a fourth NCAA Tournament appearance to his impressive resume.

A native of Henderson, Ky., Begley was a four-time selection to the SEC Academic Honor Roll during his Mississippi State playing days.