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"We've come to the decision that Norm will not be retained as our head coach for next season and we will start immediately with a national search to take over as his successor," St.John's athletic director Chris Monasch said Friday morning in a conference call.

Monasch will run the process himself and will not use a search firm or a committee. Hofstra coach Tom Pecora, Virginia Tech coach Seth Greenberg, Louisville coach Rick Pitino, Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt and former St. John's standout Mark Jackson are among the possible candidates. Greenberg, Pitino and Hewitt are all New York natives. Greenberg, Pitino and Hewitt all have their teams in postseason tournaments and St. John's wouldn't be able to interview them until their seasons are done.

"We would like to do this as quickly as possible," Monasch said. "We want to ascertain who's of interest to us and try and make an expedient decision."

Roberts was 81-101 in six years at the Queens school and never finished above 11th in the Big East. St. John's (17-16) season ended Wednesday night when they fell to Memphis, 73-71, on a last-second layup by Wesley Witherspoon in the first round of the NIT. St. John's has not been in the NCAA tournament since 2002.

"I really appreciate everything St John's did for me," Roberts, who was reportedly earning about $650,000 annually, said Friday in a phone interview. "[University president] Father [Donald] Harrington, Chris Monasch, I appreciate all the support that they gave me and my staff. And then I really think it just came down to we didn't win enough games in this conference. And I understand the business with that.

"I also know that everybody in St. John's administration knows the program is far better off than what it was when we first got there. And the program is ready to take a major step."

A longtime assistant to Bill Self at Oral Roberts, Tulsa, Illinois and Kansas, Roberts took over at St. John's when it was coming off a 6-21 season under Mike Jarvis and interim coach Kevin Clark. It was a campaign marred by sexcapades and under-the-table payments to players that resulted in probation and a loss of scholarships.

Roberts, 44, said he wasn't surprised by the move and that he saw it coming.

"I knew that we were going to talk and evaluate pretty quickly as the season ended," he said. "I knew that it wouldn't be good for anyone to keep speculating going throughout the weekend. All it is is hard on the players. That's the last thing I want to do is make it hard on the players."

Roberts becomes the second New York-area Big East coach to be fired this week. Bobby Gonzalez was let go from Seton Hall on Wednesday after four seasons.

Both schools will now be conducting searches at the same time and several individuals could be candidates for both positions, including Pecora and Greenberg.

"The fact that Seton Hall is in the market is not of concern to me," Monasch said. "There are enough good coaches out there that I'm sure we're going to find someone that we're both happy with."

Monasch said he was looking for someone with a track record of success at the Big East or BCS level.

"We want to hire someone who has a record of success of getting into the NCAA tournament," Monasch said, according to the AP. "In trying to find the right person, probably the safest choice is someone who has done it at this level, someone who believes in the mission of school and understands New York."

Kentucky's John Calipari is the highest-paid coach in the land at $4 million annually. Pitino reportedly makes $2.25 million a year in base compensation but sources says his total compensation is $3.5 million.

Asked if he was willing to pay what elite-level coaches like them make, Monasch said, "Yes, we are ready to make that commitment."

Whatever happens, Monasch said the new coach and his staff would get a pay raise.

"I can assure you we're going to spend more money on our basketball program in the next five years than we have in the last five just because the salary of the coach is going to go up," he said.

Whoever takes the job inherits a roster that will have nine seniors, and also as many as nine players who need to be signed in the Class of 2011. St. John's returns all five starters and 94 percent of the scoring from last season's team.

Jersey City St. Peter's Prep senior forward Ronald Roberts is the lone commit signed for the Class of 2010. He would need to be released from his Letter of Intent should he opt to leave.

"I'm just going to see what happens. I'm really not sure. I'm disappointed, but I just don't know what to do at this point," Ronald Roberts said last week.

Pitino, 57, is a New York native who could be the big-name candidate the school has lacked. Pitino has coached both the Knicks and Celtics and has led three different college programs to the Final Four.

Louisville won the Big East regular season and tournament titles in 2009. The Cardinals are set to play California Friday night in an NCAA tournament South Regional game in Jacksonville, Fla.

But Ian O'Connor of ESPN Tweeted Friday that St. John's intermediaries previously reached out to Pitino and asked him if he would take a pay cut to come home and he turned them down.

"I've been at Louisville nine years, and I'm hoping to go to [age] 65, and I hope it's at Louisville, and I hope they want to have me," Pitino said last month after his team lost to St. John's by 19 points at Madison Square Garden.

It may also be hard for a Catholic school to hire Pitino given his recent involvement in a sex scandal. Karen Sypher, the Louisville woman accused of extorting Pitino after they had sex and he allegedly paid for her abortion, goes on trial June 1, according to a Louisville TV station.

Pitino has also openly criticized the facilities at St. John's and Rutgers while Louisville is unveiling a brand new $350 million arena in downtown next year.

"Why would a recruit on a 36-hour visit do that [commit]? It's tough for St. John's and tough for Rutgers to attract those kids who are on a 36-hour visit," Pitino said last month.

"They're not on the same-level playing field from a facilities standpoint."

Though one Big East program has never raided another school for its coach, Monasch said he wouldn't rule it out.

"There's certainly a sensitivity to it," he said. "You work with people throughout the year. You have a common goal of trying to advance the league. I understand the sensitivity to it."

Pecora, a Queens Village, N.Y. native, may be a more realistic alternative.

Sources said Seton Hall had already reached out to the Hofstra coach about its vacancy, but that Pecora prefers St. John's because it's closer to his home and is a New York job.

"If there was a chance [at St. John's], he would look at it," a source said of Pecora. "But Seton Hall is nothing to sneeze at."

Hofstra went 19-15 this season, falling Wednesday night to IUPUI in the first round of the CBI. In nine seasons at Hofstra, Pecora is 155-126. He has twice been named the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association Coach of the Year.

If Pecora lands either the St. John's or Seton Hall job, it would almost certainly have a domino effect.

Pecora is also in play at Fordham and if he takes a Big East job, Robert Morris coach Mike Rice could benefit.

Rice, a Fordham alum, nearly steered the No. 15 Colonials to an upset of No. 2 Villanova before losing Thursday 73-70 in overtime.

Rice could end up at Fordham if Pecora lands another job. Rice could also be an option for Seton Hall or St. John's.

Hofstra, meanwhile, would have to hire a new coach should Pecora leave.

The Wagner job is also open and Roberts could be a candidate there.

As of now he said he's looking forward to spending time with his family, including sons, Nicholas, and Justin.

"I'm going to take a deep breath and enjoy my family," he said. "My son turned 18 the other day and I barely said happy birthday to him because I was running around coaching and doing other things."

The Associated Press contributed.