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Monessen’s Salvino preparing players for more than basketball

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Monessen boys basketball coach Joe Salvino has earned 582 wins, his latest coming as the Greyhounds defeated Jeannette in last week’s WPIAL Class A championship game.

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Monessen coach Joe Salvino has led the Greyhounds to the WPIAL playoffs in each of his 31 years as head coach.

His comments often draw the ire of basketball coaches and critics across Western Pennsylvania.

Whether it is a vocal stand against private and charter schools; or his competitive approach to every game no matter the opponent, Monessen head coach Joe Salvino is one of the most polarizing figures in WPIAL basketball.

Though some see a man hell-bent on winning at any cost, Salvino’s message to his players and his teaching methods go beyond basketball.

His latest achievement is one of many during an illustrious career. Salvino won his fifth WPIAL title last Friday night when the Greyhounds defeated Jeannette, 73-57, for the Class A championship at the Petersen Events Center.

Salvino, 63, led Monessen to the WPIAL playoffs in all 31 of his seasons as head coach, including ten trips to the championship game and now has 582 career victories – just 18 wins from the 600-win mark – and holds a .714 career winning percentage. He also led the Greyhounds to back-to-back PIAA Class A titles in 1988-89.

It all stems from a no-nonsense approach that drives kids to follow a structured regimen, which ultimately motivates them to work together toward a common goal.

“If he tells you to jump, you ask how high,” Justice Rawlins, a former player said. “He’s a huge influence, not even just on basketball. It’s life where he tries to make an impact on kids. He doesn’t care about championship games. He just cares about getting them prepared for life.”

Salvino’s determination and hard-nosed coaching style can be traced to his childhood in Monessen. His father, Joe, worked in the mills throughout his life. Salvino still recalls one morning when a blizzard swept across Western Pennsylvania.

Plows and salt trucks were nowhere to be found, but that did not stop his father from making the three-mile trek to Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel’s mill.

“My father was an incredible influence,” Salvino said. “It was incredible how hard he worked at everything. He never, ever, ever missed a day of work. That stuck with me.”

Discipline was common growing up. It was nothing drastic, really. Salvino was like many other young boys in Monessen during that time, but his father’s approach to life and how he was raised made an unmeasurable impact. When Joe Sr. was not instilling discipline, he took his son to countless sporting events. “Jo Jo” soaked in every second of every game.

Competitiveness was a value both of his parents held. Salvino remembers playing checkers with his mother, Betty, who would never let him win. Victory had to be earned. It was never given.

“As long as I can remember, even when I was young and learning, they wouldn’t let me win at games,” Salvino recalled. “Some people let their kids win at stuff like that, but my parents weren’t like that. They taught me that if you wanted to win, you had to prove yourself. That’s why I’m so competitive.”

The message carried over throughout Salvino’s formative years, including his days playing baseball at Parsons College in Fairfield, Iowa. He went on to work at Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel for 14 years before it closed beforing working in construction and for PennDOT on the turnpike.

Working tirelessly to support his family was his day job, but Salvino gained notoriety through his meticulous planning as a basketball coach. After returning to Monessen from Iowa, Salvino took over the junior high school program for nine years before being named the high school’s varsity head coach prior to the 1984 season.

The rest is history. The black and white of the Monessen Greyhounds signifies a deep-rooted pride within the community, which dwindled after Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel ceased operations in 1986.

Kids grow up wanting to play for Salvino. With a male enrollment of 94 students, Monessen had 40 kids attend preseason tryouts this winter.

Rawlins, a 2014 graduate of Monessen who played three years for Salvino, recalls watching as a middle schooler as the legendary coach directed instructions during a game.

“I was scared of him,” Rawlins said with a laugh. “I went to all the games and he would yell, yell and yell. I was scared of him at first, but I wanted to play for him. Once I did, I saw what he really was like as a man. He’s like a father figure to me and I’m sure he is to a lot of other kids around here.”

Helping teenagers grow as basketball players is important to Salvino, but having an impact on the lives of kids carries far more weight than his seven championship rings.

Like many other steel towns across the region, Monessen was hit hard by poverty and an increasing crime rate following the closing of the mills in 1986. The number of single-parent households has grown and though the climate at children’s homes can change, kids have one steadying force every winter. They can count on Salvino being on the sideline, often squatting during games; wearing a sweater over a pressed shirt and slacks.

“I coach a lot of kids who have single parents and I know there are a lot of mothers out there who are glad their kids are playing basketball, so they know where their kid is at,” Salvino said. “I’ve tried to be that type of person – stern discipline – but also knowing that those players can come to me at any time and it doesn’t have to do anything with basketball. They can come to me with anything and we can work it out.”

Salvino’s message to his players of never letting up drew criticism when Monessen defeated Section 3-A rival Avella, 101-11, Jan. 23. Coaches wondered what Salvino was trying to prove. Altough it has come at the behest of parents, opposing players, and at times, opposing coaches, Salvino wanted to prepare his kids for the WPIAL playoffs.

In 12 regular-season section games this winter, the Greyhounds defeated their opponents by an average of 60.5 points. California head coach Bruno Pappasergi, whose team lost three times to Monessen by an average of 48.7 points, has known Salvino for more than 30 years and is not shy about his thoughts on the matter.

“I have the greatest respect for Joe,” Pappasergi said. “I don’t care what other coaches say about what the scores are or anything like that. Do you want to know what my comment is? Get better. He has to prepare his kids. His kids play as hard as they can for every second they are on the court. You have to respect a gentleman like that.”

When Monessen captured another WPIAL title before a large group of fans wearing black and white, Salvino could not help but smile. Bringing joy to the community in which his parents raised him never grows old. It’s another honor on his resume that would make his parents proud.

“Monessen has this bad wrap where it always seems it is in the paper for something going wrong,” Salvino said. “It’s nice to see something go right for them.”

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