As the weather warms up in Akron, Ohio, Keith Dambrot could have been floating on a pontoon boat with his wife. They lived on a lake outside the city as Dambrot coached the Zips to a 305-139 record and three NCAA tournaments.

Instead, he sat in his office Monday in Pittsburgh, knee-deep in the process of rebuilding Duquesne basketball.

At 58, Dambrot wanted to restore Duquesne’s program to its former glory from when his dad played there in the early 1950s — but he also wanted to break from routine and tackle something new. Dambrot had led Akron to 12 consecutive 21-plus win seasons.

“That’s one reason I did it,” Dambrot said. “I didn’t want to look back when I retired and say, ‘Hey, I didn’t take the challenge. I didn’t test myself. I didn’t compete, I just took the easy way out.’”

Duquesne named Dambrot its new coach March 28, two weeks after firing Jim Ferry, who went 60-97 in his five-year tenure. For 2½ days, Dambrot didn’t even make it to the practice gym.

He stayed in his office and on the recruiting trail, trying to bolster Duquesne’s roster that had dwindled during the coaching search. Two players, forward Isiaha Mike and forward Nakye Sanders, have elected to transfer, and two commits, guard Jamari Wheeler and forward John Lewis III, received their release. Center Darius Lewis graduated, leaving Duquesne without experienced big men other that Jordan Robinson, who spent the final games of last season out with a slight ACL tear.

Living in a hotel while trying to find a place to live in Pittsburgh, Dambrot hasn’t had time to do much else besides recruit players to the program, with several visiting Duquesne over the weekend.

“In April, to find five 4’s and 5’s is almost ridiculous,” Dambrot said of the search for power forwards and centers. “So we really haven’t adjusted at all, we’re just kind of going on the run.”

Short on time and bodies, Dambrot and his four assistants from Akron have taken a “meat-and-potatoes approach” to the transition, prioritizing bolstering their roster over most other matters.

Akron’s Tavian Dunn-Martin and Memphis’ Craig Randall announced they will transfer to Duquesne, but the Dukes need players who can play right away. Dambrot likes to take high school players and develop them, he said, but he might have to cater to short-term needs and go after grad transfers and junior-college players.

I would like to thank Akron for all their support and an amazing season, but I will be transferring to Duquesne with @CoachDambrot

— TDM 🚶🏽🏀💫 (@nolimitTDM_11) March 28, 2017

It was a short process but an easy decision. For the next 3 years I will be playing for Coach Dambrot at Duquesne University. GO DUKES!! pic.twitter.com/dPPL9sl6OJ

— Craig (@moneyteam1222) April 9, 2017

“I’m not really used to that, because all I’ve done for the last 12 years is just build our depth, because we always had guys in the pipeline,” Dambrot said. “We kind of did it old-fashioned, where guys earn their playing time, earn their minutes.”

In a perfect world, Duquesne wouldn’t have to scramble for players this late in the game. But for now, the Dukes have to “shoot from the hip,” Dambrot said.

Athletic director Dave Harper said the transition has been seamless despite the rush order to build a roster.

“You’ve kind of got to sprint and think in these situations, when you’re in the late recruiting period,” Harper said. “[They want] to make sure they do everything purposeful to build an initial roster, making sure they’re taking care of the kids that are here and still thinking about staying, obviously.”

The challenges of rebuilding a program — what drew Dambrot to Duquesne in the first place — is what he’s selling to recruits, he said.

It’s an opportunity to revive a program that hasn’t been to the NCAA tournament in the past 40 years, an opportunity to do something people might not think they can do. But as he said in his initial news conference, Dambrot still doesn’t see why Duquesne can’t become a winning program.

“I just can’t understand it,” Dambrot said. “I’m going to do everything I can to bring it back.”

Sarah K. Spencer: sspencer@post-gazette.com.

First Published: April 11, 2017, 4:00 a.m.