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After four years at Georgia Tech's director of basketball operations, Peter Zaharis became an assistant coach in April of 2004, filling the position left vacant when Dean Keener was named head coach at James Madison.
This was Zaharis' third college assistant coaching assignment, having spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Villanova and one at New York University. He has helped coach four teams to post-season play, including two of Tech's three NCAA appearances.
Zaharis joined the Villanova staff as administrative assistant in 1996-97, when Hewitt was in his final year on the Wildcats' staff. He became an assistant coach beginning with the 1997-98 season through 1999-2000.
In his three seasons as an assistant coach, Villanova went 53-41 with a pair of 20-win seasons with one appearance each in the NCAA Tournament and NIT.
Zaharis began his coaching career in 1992 on the high school level, spending three years as an assistant coach at Holy Trinity High School in New York.
From there, Zaharis made the jump to the collegiate level, earning a spot as an assistant coach at NYU. While at his alma mater, he handled recruiting, scouting, and assisted in the planning of practices. In addition, he served as the head coach of the junior varsity program. During his tenure at NYU, the Violets advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Zaharis earned his bachelor's degree in 1987 from NYU and then added his MBA from the school in 1989. Prior to entering the coaching ranks, Zaharis worked for five years at Citibank in New York City as a financial analyst.
Zaharis, a native of Jamaica, N.Y., is married to the former Ritsa Demetriades, and the couple has a daughter, Anastasia.
ZAHARIS FILEFull Name: Peter John Zaharis Birthdate: February 24, 1966 Hometown: Jamaica, N.Y. Education: B.S. in Management/International Business (1987), Masters in Business Administration (1989), New York University Experience: Assistant Coach, Holy Trinity High School (1992-95) Assistant Coach, New York University (1995-96) Administrative Assistant, Villanova (1996-97) Assistant Coach, Villanova (1997-2000) Director of Operations, Georgia Tech (2000-04) Assistant Coach, Georgia Tech (2004-11) Joined Tech Staff: May, 2000 Left Tech Staff: March 25, 2011
