Kristen Sharkey is the head coach of the University at Buffalo women's basketball team in Buffalo, New York, and entered her second season leading the program in 2026-27 after being hired on April 18, 2025, as the 14th head coach in school history.
Before returning to Buffalo, Sharkey spent three seasons at Syracuse, where she rose to associate head coach. Syracuse reached the postseason in each of her last two years there, advancing to the Super 16 of the WNIT in 2023 and the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2024. The 2023-24 Orange finished 24-8 overall and 13-5 in ACC play after being picked ninth in the conference, climbed as high as No. 17 in the AP Top 25, and earned an NCAA Tournament win over Arizona before losing to UConn. She also worked with Dyaisha Fair, who finished her college career with 3,403 points and was selected 16th overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft by the Las Vegas Aces.
