Barry Rohrssen is officially out at Manhattan College.

Rohrssen, the former assistant to Ben Howland and Jamie Dixon at Pittsburgh, was fired Wednesday, less than a week after the team capped a 6-25 season with an overtime loss to Siena in the opening round of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference tournament.

Rohrssen went 58-95 in five seasons at the school. (more…)

Barry Rohrssen will coach Manhattan this weekend in the MAAC conference tournament in Bridgeport, but it appears his tenure at the school will come to an end after that.

“Barry’s our coach going into the MAAC tournament,” a university spokesman said.

Rohrssen did not return a voicemail seeking comment.

The Daily News reported Tuesday that Rohrssen was informed that day that he would not return.

In five seasons, he is 58-93 overall at Manhattan and 37-53 in conference. (more…)

Jabari Brown’s list of seven schools has now expanded to nine schools.

Sort of.

His father, David, said Maryland and Miami are now being considered along with the original seven of Cal, Washington, Oregon, St. John’s, Georgia Tech, UConn and DePaul.

“He’s reconsidering Maryland at this point,” David Brown said Wednesday night by phone. “He’s also kind of looking at Miami a little bit. Jabari was originally not that interested in them. Now he’s a little more interested.”

The 6-foot-5 Brown of Oakland, Calif., is the No. 5 shooting guard in the Class of 2011. (more…)

LeBron James gave the Oakland Soldiers a shout out and then watched the loaded AAU team win the Fab 48 tournament in Las Vegas.

“It felt awesome. He gave us a salute,” Soldiers forward Kyle Wiltjer of Portland, Ore., who scored 16 points in the win, said by text.

James is apparently spending the weekend in Vegas partying with Dwyane Wade and Chris Paul.

With team sponsor Drew Gooden also watching, the Soldiers routed the Iowa Barnstormers, 86-66, behind a game-high 19 points from senior wing Jabari Brown of Oakland, Calif.

“It feels good to win Vegas because we really expected to win Peach [Jam] so this was a major bounce back for our squad,” Brown wrote in a text. The Soldiers fell in the quarters at Peach Jam. (more…)

Seton Hall signed Aaron Geramipoor, a frontcourt player originally from Manchester, England.

The 6-foot-11, 225-pound Geramipoor was a teammate of Patrik Auda at the Canarias Basketball Academy in the Canary Islands, Spain.  Auda signed to play basketball at Seton Hall in May.

“Adding another talent from the Canarias Basketball Academy, one the premier schools in Europe, will bolster our frontcourt lineup for next year and beyond,” Seton Hall coach Kevin Willard said.  “Aaron is incredibly long and has great tools for a man his size.  We look forward to his growth in our system and believe he can be a real asset moving forward.” (more…)

Joel ‘Air Jamaica’ Wright has verbally committed to play for Manhattan College.

The 6-foot-7, 210-pound forward had initially committed to Fordham while at Brooklyn Thomas Jefferson, but he and Fordham ultimately parted ways.

Wright is now at Central Jersey Each One Teach One (CJEOTO) after spending the first half of the year at Central Carolina Sports Academy, which he said has since shut down.

Wright said he picked Manhattan over interest from Providence, Pittsburgh, Baylor, Miami and Drexel. The story was first reported by Gotham Hoops Scouting.

“I picked them because it’s still a chance to be home,” Wright said. “[Coach Barry Rohrssen] is a cool dude. We had a relationship. I’m going to school where I can get exposure and my family can see me play. I want to be home so my mother [Diana Wilson] can see me play and enjoy my college career.” (more…)

***Read the feature on Ashton and Sterling Gibbs here.***

I’m working on a feature story on brothers Ashton and Sterling Gibbs of Scotch Plains, N.J., both of whom are playing for USA Basketball teams this summer.

Check back later for the full story, but I’m posting this college update first.

Sterling, a 6-foot point rising junior guard out of West Orange (NJ) Seton Hall Prep, says Villanova is his leader at this point.

“I would say right now the favorite would be Villanova,” Gibbs said Thursday by phone after he scored 13 points as the U.S. beat Venezuela 102-76 in the FIBA Americas U16 Championship in Mendoza, Argentina.

“I just like the way that they play and how their guards play. They’re just an open offense. There’s not real set plays. They just like to have players who could just make plays.” (more…)

Tevin Baskin, a 6-foot-7 forward out of Stamford (Conn.) Trinity Catholic, committed to Quinnipiac on Wednesday, choosing that school over Manhattan and New Orleans.

Baskin said he chose Tom Moore’s program because of its proximity to home and because of the size of the school.

“It’s big, but it’s not huge,” Baskin told his hometown Stamford Times. “It’s small, but it’s not tiny.”

He added: “I’m just happy I got this process out of the way and now I just can just relax.”

Baskin initially drew interest from Big East and other high-major schools, but then said he hadn’t heard back from some of those programs.

Last season, Baskin averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds for Trinity Catholic, which finished 24-2 and was upset by eventual state champ Bulkeley in the Class L quarterfinals.

Great story out of Manhattan College where coach Barry Rohrssen has signed Kevin Laue, a 6-foot-10 center born without a left hand.

“For all the right reasons, Kevin deserves this chance,” Rohrssen told The New York Times. “He’s someone who won’t take this for granted.”

Laue is part of a three-man recruiting class that also includes 6-4 guards Rico Pickett and George Beamon.

(more…)

John Wall, the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2009, has been charged with breaking and entering by Raleigh police, according to WRAL in Raleigh.

Authorities said Wall, 18, was charged with misdemeanor breaking and entering in connection with an April 27 break-in at an unoccupied home in Raleigh.

An officer saw Wall leaving from the rear of the house and detained him, police said. There was no forced entry and nothing was taken from the house, police said.

The home in question is vacant and for sale, meaning Wall and his friends could have just been guilty of hanging out in a spot where they were not allowed.

“I wouldn’t jump to conclusions,” Dave Telep of Scout told WRAL. “It’s a misdemeanor. It could be nothing more than a mistake. (more…)