Associated Press Jay John, left, applauds during his introduction as Oregon State's new men's head basketball coach yesterday at Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, Ore. John, who was an assistant at Arizona under Lute Olson, replaces Ritchie McKay, who was 22-37 in two seasons with the Beavers.

What was only a rumor Monday became official yesterday: Jay John was named the head coach at Oregon State.

The news was announced yesterday by Oregon State athletic director Mitch Barnhart during a press conference in Corvallis, Ore.

John's five-year contract is worth $225,000 and has an additional $100,000 in incentives available if he can turn the former powerhouse program around.

John, 43, an assistant for the Wildcats under Lute Olson since 1998, opted to leave Tucson and take the head spot for a team that has not had a winning season since 1990. John will be only the seventh coach in Beaver men's basketball history.

"I'm excited to be a part of the Oregon State University basketball tradition," said John at the press conference yesterday. "As a young person growing up in Tucson, I followed the Ralph Miller teams with great interest. I'm proud to be here; this is a great university and a terrific opportunity for myself."

Barnhart's search for a head coach to replace the departed Ritchie McKay, who resigned two weeks ago to coach at New Mexico, included interviews with South Florida coach Seth Greenberg and University of the Pacific coach Bob Thomason.

"This is a guy who's paid his dues," Barnhart said of John. "He's worked on his craft to where he's at the point where he should have his own program and have some fun."

Olson said the void left by John would be tough to fill.

"We certainly hate to see him go; it's a big loss for our program," said Olson, who has now had five assistants get Division I head coaching jobs. "But we are happy to see him get a great opportunity in the Pac-10 Conference. He leaves with our blessing and best wishes for an outstanding head coaching career."

Josh Pastner is the likely replacement to fill John's former spot on the coaching staff. Pastner, a former Wildcat player and current administrative assistant coach, would not comment yesterday about being promoted.

John, a Tucson native, prepped at Salpointe Catholic High School and was also a graduate of the UA in 1981 with a degree in biology. During his time at Arizona, John has been instrumental in the development of the Wildcat's frontcourt players such as A.J. Bramlett, Michael Wright and Loren Woods.

John was also the lead recruiter of UA junior guard Jason Gardner and freshman forward Channing Frye. He tried to recruit OSU players Brian Jackson and Jimmie Haywood at Arizona, but they chose Oregon State before they quit the Beavers last year, partly because of differences with McKay.

John has 14 years of Division I coaching experience. Prior to coaching at Arizona, John was an assistant coach at Oregon for one season, his second one-year stint with the team. Prior to his stint with the Ducks, he was an assistant coach at Butler for eight seasons. He was also an assistant and head coach at Jamestown Community College in New York from 1986-1988.

John will take the reins of a Beaver team returning eight lettermen, including four starters, from a team that was 12-17 overall and finished ninth in the Pac-10 with a mark of 4-14.

Oregon State's MVP and leading scorer and rebounder from last season, junior forward Philip Ricci, told The Daily Barometer he was excited by John's hiring.

"It's great news, a coach with a great rep coming in," Ricci said. "He'll add to the stuff coaches have already taught me. I'll respect what he says - I'm anxious to start."

John said he thinks the current Beaver team will be competitive.

"I know these guys want to win, want to compete, want to get better," John said of his new team. "And we will win."