Shiva Senthil enters his fourth season as head men's basketball coach at Oberlin College in 2025-26.
In his first season, Senthil led the Crimson and Gold to a signature win over the College of Wooster, marking Oberlin's first victory against the Scots since 1988 as they snapped a 60-game losing streak against the longtime national powerhouse. Under Senthil's direction, there have been six All-NCAC honorees as well as the 2024 NCAC Newcomer of the Year, the 2024 D3hoops.com Co-Regional Rookie of the Year, and a NACDA Good Works selection. The Crimson and Gold have produced 19 NCAC Academic Honor Roll recipients and five College Sports Communicators Academic All-District laurels while Senthil was at the helm.
Senthil came to Oberlin after a successful three-year tenure as the head coach at SUNY-Canton. In his first season in upstate New York, Senthil led the Roos to their first-ever NCAA Tournament after winning the 2020 North Atlantic Conference (NAC) championship, finishing the year with a 16-12 record and 10-4 mark in the NAC. Senthil mentored All-NAC athletes as well as a two-time NAC Defensive Player of the Year, the 2021 NAC Man of the Year, and the 2020-21 Senior Scholar Athlete.
One of just 30 honorees nationally across all divisions to be named to the 2019-20 Under Armour / National Association of Basketball Coaches 30-under-30 team, Senthil was also a finalist for the HoopDirt.com Coach of the Year award.
Prior to his arrival at SUNY-Canton, Senthil spent the 2018-19 season as an assistant coach at the University of Chicago, helping the Maroons record 15 wins, which included four victories against Top-25 teams. He has additional coaching stops as an assistant at Clarkson University (2016-18), SUNY-Purchase (2015-16), and Michigan-Dearborn (2014-15).
As a player, Senthil helped Hartwick College reach the NCAA Tournament two times (2011, 2012). In 2014, he was part of the Hawks' return to the national stage as a student assistant coach. Senthil graduated from Hartwick in 2014 with a bachelor's degree in Business Administration and went on to earn his MBA from Clarkson University in 2018.
