Coach Dixon made a public appearance last night at the Mon Valley Panther Club Chapter Banquet.

Dixon, spoke about the recent death of his 28-year-old sister Army basketball coach Maggie Dixon, and losing two of his assistants Joe Lombardy [sp] and Barry Rohrssen, who took head coaching jobs at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Manhattan College, respectively.

“I received tens [sic] of thousands of e-mails and letters about my sister,” he said. “I was very proud of her and love talking about her. She was a special girl. Tomorrow is her birthday so it will be a tough day for our family.”

Dixon wasn’t upset about losing two of his aides.

“I want guys who want to be head coaches,” he said. “Where they came from being Pitt is what it’s all about. They both landed great jobs in their respective leagues.”

Coach Dixon is not permitted to talk about recruiting so there was no mention of Eugene Harvey or Luis Colon. There is a little more than a week left in this signing period and no word on either at this time as to where they are really leaning.

Colon was supposed to visit K-State this past weekend, but instead will be going this weekend.

Colon instead took a trip to Amherst to see UMass. Suddenly it isn’t just Pitt, Duquesne and K-State any longer. UConn and Jim Calhoun have also joined the chase.

“I told (Travis Ford) we have them from the highest program to the lowest program,” [Colon’s AAU Coach Art] Alvarez said. “Look at a guy like Barea, he could have played anywhere in the country and he picked Northeastern.

“With Colon, we’re going to find the right place, the right fit for him,” he said. “Just because UConn and these other big schools are recruiting him doesn’t mean he’s going to go there. We’re not going to go to the bigger school, we’re going to go to the better fit.”

Alvarez said Colon would like to play right away, and that’s one of the reasons he is visiting UMass this weekend.

His playing time at Pitt or UConn would be very contingent on the big men at those schools staying in the draft. UMass has 7′ Luke Bonner eligible this season.

Do you realize Pitt hasn’t had a starting point guard not from New York or New Jersey since Kelli Taylor was dismissed from the team shortly into the 1999-00 season? Heck, even the back-ups have mostly been NY/NJ products.

Pitt may be taking a shot at breaking that streak for the class of 2007.

“I’m very open at this point. Three schools, Maryland, Clemson and Georgia, have offered me a scholarship,” stated standout guard Malcolm Delaney (6-foot-3 inches, 195 pounds) from Towson Catholic High School in Towson, MD. “Pittsburgh and Indiana seem to have really started recruiting me hard. I like them both and hope they offer soon.”

Scout.com ranks Delaney a “four-star” recruit and the 11th ranked point guard in the class of 2007. He averaged 19 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game last season.

“Coach (Joe) Lombardi was the main guy recruiting me for Pitt. He accepted a head coaching position recently. I think Coach (Jamie) Dixon will continue contact with me. I like the Panthers a lot. In my opinion, the two best conferences in the country are the Big East and ACC. Pitt has been one of the best teams in the Big East. I would love to play for a team like that.”

Delaney will take the SAT on June 3rd. He is hoping to visit Pitt shortly after. Malcolm has already taken visits to Wake Forest, Maryland, Virginia and Georgetown. “I want to see what Pitt’s program is all about,” said Delaney.

The Scout.com profile points out he has very good 3-point range and will likely develop into a high top-100 prospect this year. Rivals.com only has him as a 3-star recruit and doesn’t really have much info on him.

I’m not sure how serious either side will ultimately be. A lot depends how interested he will be in playing close to home. Especially if Maryland really goes hard at him.

Talk about the backhanded compliment. ESPN.com (Insider subs) lists the 10 best undrafted.

8. Greg Lee, WR, Pittsburgh — Arizona Cardinals
Lee was very productive during his collegiate career and is a big, durable, strong athlete with the potential to develop into a sub-package possession receiver in the NFL. However, he lacks the initial burst, top-end speed and quick-twitch athleticism to transfer his big-play ability in the NFL. To make the Cardinals’ roster, Lee will need to beat out seventh-round pick Todd Watkins — among others — for the fifth wide receiver spot.

Actually a forgotten point. No injuries during his time. He came in with Terrell Allen — the more heralded receiver — but Allen couldn’t stay healthy his first couple of years. Allen had other issues this past season and transferred. Lee, though, after Coach Walt Harris called him out for nursing an injury in training camp in 2004 was always on the field.