Asst. basketball coaches leave for head-coaching jobs

Pitt men’s basketball head coach Jamie Dixon decided to stick with Pitt a few more years… Pitt men’s basketball head coach Jamie Dixon decided to stick with Pitt a few more years this off-season.

Much of his staff, however, chose another route.

Associate head coach Barry Rohrssen and assistant head coach Joe Lombardi both recently accepted head coaching jobs, ending their tenures at Pitt.

While both will be leaving, they will also be headed near home. Lombardi stays in Western Pennsylvania by moving on to Indiana University of Pennsylvania, while Rohrssen will head back to New York to coach Manhattan College.

“It is my desire to have assistants at the University of Pittsburgh who aspire to be head coaches,” Dixon said. “I know that has been a goal for Barry and Joe and that’s why I am so excited about their opportunities.”

Rohrssen, a New York native, has served as an assistant and associate head coach at Pitt for the last seven years and is best known for his ability to recruit the New York City area.

His recruiting efforts have landed former Pitt stars Chris Taft and Carl Krauser as well as current Panthers Levance Fields, Ronald Ramon, Keith Benjamin and Tyrell Biggs.

“People associate Barry with recruiting, but he is much more than a recruiter,” Manhattan Director of Athletics Bob Byrnes said. “I believe Barry certainly knows how to make players better.

“In short, Barry Rohrssen is a winner that recruits winners and develops winners.”

Rohrssen’s ability to win as a head coach will be tested early. Manhattan finished 20-11 overall and 14-4 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference last season, capturing the MAAC regular season title over Iona on the final day of the season.

“Barry has been very important to our success over the years,” Dixon said. “He was a vital part of our program’s rise to elite status in the Big East and nationally.

“It’s great that he gets to return home to Brooklyn and I know he will be a tremendous asset for Manhattan.”

Lombardi finds himself in a similar situation.

His 20 years of assistant coaching landed him the IUP job, where he served as an assistant for three years before moving to the Division I level.

“I’m thrilled that he was able to achieve his goal of becoming a head coach while still keeping his Western Pennsylvania roots,” Dixon said.

Lombardi echoed those thoughts.

“I believe in putting down roots,” he said. “I have had the good fortune of not having to move too far away from home to continue my coaching career. As you get older, you don’t control your destiny as much when you’re an assistant.”

IUP finished last season at 19-9 and qualified for the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference playoffs for the 13th time in 14 years.

Lombardi’s extensive assistant coaching efforts include international experience on the 1992 Pan American National Team coaching staff that took part in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament of the Americas.

As a proven winner, Dixon knows what Lombardi can mean to a staff and figures he’ll do just as well at IUP as he did at Pitt.

“After being named head coach at Pitt three years ago, one of the first calls I made was to Joe to ask him join our staff,” Dixon said. “As both a recruiter and coach, Joe made a big imprint on Pitt basketball.”

In his first step to replacing his assistant coaches, Dixon promoted his director of basketball operations, Orlando Antigua, to assistant coach. And if the tradition continues, Antigua could be on his way to bigger things after a few years.

“It is a wonderful compliment to our program when other institutions are interested in our staff members for head coaching jobs,” Dixon said. “It’s a tribute to what we’ve accomplished here not only in terms of winning on the court, but also the academic achievements and character of our players.”