Barbee fills UK assistant coach opening

As expected, John Calipari has filled his assistant coach opening with a current Kentucky staff member.

Tony Barbee has been moved to full-time assistant coach, UK announced Friday. Barbee, a former head coach at UTEP and Auburn, held the title of special assistant to the head coach for the Wildcats this past season.

Barbee replaces Barry "Slice" Rohrssen, who joined the staff at St. John's last month.

"I'm excited for Tony, who has been a part of my basketball family for more than 20 years," Calipari said in a statement. "Tony has proven himself to be one of the top coaches in the country. The knowledge and experience he brought to our staff last season was invaluable. To have him be a part of our staff is a blessing for all of us."

Barbee played for Calipari at UMass before coaching there under him. Barbee later was a part of Calipari's staff at Memphis before being hired as UTEP's head coach in 2006. After leading the Miners to 26 wins and the NCAA tournament in 2009-10, Barbee was tapped to be the head coach at Auburn, spending four seasons in the SEC before being let go and ultimately replaced by Bruce Pearl.

While not a full-time coach during the 2014-15 season, Barbee "assisted Calipari in a multitude of roles, including game-plan preparation, practice plans and administrative duties within everyday basketball operations," according to UK.

"I really enjoyed my first season in Lexington and I'm looking forward to returning to the bench as a coach," Barbee said in a statement. "I'm grateful to Coach Cal for giving me the opportunity to represent this prestigious program and university in this capacity."