Tony Benford

Tony L. Benford (born March 22, 1964) is an American basketball coach who is the head men's coach at the University of North Texas. Benford was an assistant coach under Buzz Williams with the Marquette Golden Eagles men's basketball team.

A native of Hobbs, New Mexico — and 1982 graduate of Hobbs High School — Benford played under coach Ralph Tasker. Benford is married with four children. He attended Texas Tech University, where he played on the Red Raiders basketball team for head coach Gerald Myers. While Benford played for Texas Tech, the 1984–85 Red Raiders team won both the Southwest Conference (SWC) regular season title and SWC Classic. The 1985–86 Red Raiders team won the SWC Classic, and Benford was named "Most Outstanding Player" in the conference tournament. Benford was drafted by the Boston Celtics in the fourth round of the 1986 NBA Draft before playing in the Dutch Basketball League.

Benford's first coaching experience was as an assistant with the New Mexico Lobos. Later he served as an assistant with the Arizona State Sun Devils and the Nebraska Cornhuskers before joining the Golden Eagles in 2008. Benford was promoted to associate head coach at Marquette for the 2011-12 season. On April 24, 2012, Benford was named the new head men's basketball coach of the North Texas Mean Green.