Lou Rossini
Lou Rossini (1921-2005)
Teams coached: Columbia Lions, NYU Violets, St. Francis (NY) Terriers
Columbia record: 117-71 (.622)
NYU record: 185-137 (.575)
St. Francis (NY) record: 55-48 (.534)
Overall record: 357-256 (.582)
Career Accomplishments:
- NCAA National Championships: 0
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 4 (1951, 1960, 1962, 1963)
- NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen: 3 (1960, 1962, 1963)
- NCAA Tournament Final Four: 1 (1960)
- NIT Championships: 0 (Runner-up in 1966)
- NIT Appearances: 3 (1964, 1965, 1966)
- Metro NY Regular Season Champion: 1 (1960)
- Ivy League Regular Season Champion: 1 (1951)
Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):
| 1975-1979 | St. Francis (NY) |
| 1958-1971 | NYU |
| 1950-1958 | Columbia |
Lou Rossini Facts
- Lucio Rossini
- Born April 24, 1921
- Died October 21, 2005
- Hometown: Bronx, New York
- Alma Mater: Columbia University (BA, 1947 & MA, 1949)
- After attending Theodore Roosevelt HS in the Bronx, Rossini started his career at St. John’s playing for Joe Lapchick
- Left to serve in the Army Air Forces during World War II; coached basketball at air bases during his service
- Returned to New York to finish his education at Columbia, where he played basketball for head coaches Paul Mooney and Gordon Ridings
- Started his coaching career in 1950, leading the Columbia Lions for eight seasons
- Reached the 1951 NCAA Tournament in his first season and won 117 games in total
- Left for NYU, then a Division I program, in 1958, where he coached the Violets for 13 seasons
- Went to three NCAA Tournaments and three NITs, including a trip to the 1959 NCAA Final Four and Runner-Up finish in the 1966 NIT
- Resigned in 1971, shortly before NYU dropped basketball
- Finished his collegiate coaching career with a four-year stint at St. Francis (NY)
- Later on coached professional teams in Japan, Brazil, Spain and Italy
- Coached the Puerto Rico national team for 20 years, coaching them in the Olympics in 1964 (4th place) and 1968
- Won a Silver medal at the 1959 Pan American Games and then a Bronze medal in 1963
- Served as an adjunct professor at St. John’s from 1986 until his retirement in 1999
- Along with his wife, Adelia, had two sons and one daughter
Lou Rossini Coaching Tree
- Raymond Dalmau (Puerto Rico)
- Arthur Loche (Florida Tech, Vermont)
- Jack Rohan (Columbia)
- Satch Sanders (Boston Celtics, Harvard)
