Ethan McIlhargey enters his second year in 2023-24 as an assistant women's basketball coach and recruting coordinator. McIlhargey came to ACU after spending three seasons as the Director of Video and Analytics for the University of Utah women's basketball program from the Pac-12 Conference.
McIlhargey is in full charge of the recruiting efforts of the program and coordinating all on and off-campus recruitment. On the court, McIlhargey is in charge of post-player development. He also scouts upcoming opponents, assists in game planning for every game, and brings analytical expertise that specializes in shot quality and special situations.
During his time in Salt Lake City, McIlhargey led and assisted in many different areas. He was responsible for scouting and analytical reports on opponents and Utah, while using analytics to help in recruiting and player development. He has assisted with on-campus recruiting and was the Utah Women's Basketball Camps director.
The Utes went 21-12 in the 2021-22 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011 and the first time as a member of the Pac-12 Conference. Utah made history during the 2021-22 season when they advanced to the championship game of the Pac-12 Tournament for the first time in program history and set the school record for most three-pointers made in a single season (312). The Utah Utes were number one in the country in nearly every offensive category. During his three years at Utah, the Pac-12 Conference was in high regards as the best women’s basketball conference in the country.
Before coming to the University of Utah, McIlhargey was the Director of Basketball Operations at Tennessee Tech. During his one season with the Golden Eagles, they came away with their highest win total since 2011, finishing the season 22-11. It was the third-largest win increase in NCAA Division I in 2018-19. Tennessee Tech went from seven to 22 wins, a 15 game increase, in a singular season. The Golden Eagles went to their first postseason appearance since 2011.
McIlhargey coordinated all aspects of practice, game scheduling, and travel for the team for Tennessee Tech. He was the liaison to the marketing, alumni relations, and sports information department. He also assisted with on-campus recruiting and film breakdown of practices, games, and scouts.
During the 2017-18 season, McIlhargey served as the video coordinator at Stephen F. Austin. The Ladyjacks turned in a 25-7 season and 16-2 mark in Southland Conference play, earning the program's first-ever at-large bid into the Women's National Invitational Tournament (WNIT). He was in charge of video, analytics, and assisted in scout6ing reports.
From 2012 to 2017, McIlhargey served as a student assistant at the University of Idaho. He aided in the Vandals three NCAA tournament appearances and three conference tournament titles while also helping the team to two regular-season titles in the Western Athletic Conference and Big Sky Conference.
The Kuna, Idaho native graduated from the University of Idaho in 2017.
