WORCESTER, Mass. – Holy Cross head coach Dave Paulsen has announced his men's basketball coaching staff for the 2023-2024 season. Bryson Johnson has been named associate head coach and Ted Rawlings has joined the staff as an assistant coach, while assistant coach R.J. Evans has been retained.

"I'm incredibly excited to have Bryson, R.J. and Ted as my partners in our efforts to restore Holy Cross basketball to a championship program," said Paulsen. "First and foremost, these are three incredible human beings who will be outstanding role models, mentors and teachers for our student-athletes. They are humble servant-leaders, understand and embrace the mission of Holy Cross as an institution, and bring a diversity of skill sets, experiences and perspectives that will enable us to effectively recruit, retrain and retain the next generation of Crusader men's basketball players."

Johnson joins the Crusaders after spending the last two years as an assistant coach at the University of Vermont. He helped the Catamounts win two America East Conference regular season and tournament titles, while going 51-17 overall and 31-3 in league play. Johnson was previously on the staff at George Mason University for three years, serving as an assistant coach during the 2020-2021 season and an interim assistant coach in 2019-2020. He was previously an assistant coach at Brown University during the 2017-2018 campaign, and spent two years as a graduate assistant at George Mason from 2015-2017. Johnson is a 2013 graduate of Bucknell University with a bachelor's degree in economics. He helped lead the Bison to an overall record of 92-41 during his four years, with the team winning three Patriot League regular season titles and two Patriot League Tournament championships. A second team All-Patriot League and Academic All-Patriot League selection, Johnson scored 1,384 career points.

"I'm thrilled to be reunited with Bryson," said Paulsen. "As a player, Bryson was one of the finest leaders I ever coached. He had an infectious enthusiasm and joy for the game that inspired his teammates to work harder and sacrifice more for the good of the team. I've never had a player work harder or get more out of his ability, and he has carried that same work ethic and focus on player development into his coaching career. It has been fun to see Bryson grow as a professional and earn progressively more responsibilities at Brown, George Mason and Vermont. He was a huge part of two NCAA tournament teams the last two years at Vermont and had the opportunity to learn from one of the best in the business in John Becker. Winning follows Bryson wherever he goes and I know he'll have a huge impact on our program both on and off the court."

"I am extremely excited to begin working at Holy Cross and to be back with my college coach, Coach Paulsen," said Johnson. "I have been so impressed with the people here at Holy Cross and look forward to building relationships with everyone on campus and in the community."

Rawlings comes to Holy Cross after spending four years on the coaching staff at Texas A&M University-Commerce. He helped the Lions in their transition from Division II to Division I, with the team posting a 9-9 record in Southland Conference play during its first Division I season in 2022-2023. Texas A&M-Commerce previously advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament in 2021-2022, while posting an overall mark of 55-48 during Rawlings' time on the staff. Prior to his time with the Lions, he served as the director of basketball operations at George Mason University from 2016-2019, the coordinator of men's basketball operations at Brown University from 2014-2016 and as an assistant coach at the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia from 2012-2014. Rawlings earned his bachelor's degree in English from the University of Pennsylvania in 2011 and his master's degree in sport management from Drexel University in 2013.

"Ted is the hardest-working, most detail-oriented professional I've encountered in my coaching career," said Paulsen. "His organizational ability and capacity for work is unmatched. After excelling in the operations role at both Brown and George Mason, Ted went to Commerce where he had the opportunity to gain valuable recruiting and on-court coaching experience. Jaret von Rosenberg has done a phenomenal job in guiding Commerce during its transition to Division I and Ted had a big role in that success. He is an excellent teacher of the game and comes to Holy Cross with great contacts in a talent-rich state and a reputation as a thorough and relentless recruiter."

"I am ecstatic to join the Holy Cross basketball community and for the opportunity to once again work with Coach Paulsen and with Bryson and R.J.," said Rawlings. "All of them know what it takes to be successful in the Patriot League. It is always bittersweet to leave friends, but Coach Rose and the Texas A&M-Commerce community prepared me for this move. Athletic Director Kit Hughes' vision for the department is exciting, as is being a part of the rich history that is Holy Cross basketball."

Evans has been on the Holy Cross coaching staff for four years, and has been heavily involved in recruiting, on-court coaching, practice planning, opponent scouting, player development and game planning, in addition to being a member of Holy Cross' Diversity & Inclusion Task Force. He was previously an assistant coach at North-Carolina-Asheville in 2018-2019, and an assistant coach at Louisville in 2017-2018, helping the Cardinals to an overall record of 22-14 and a trip to the National Invitation Tournament quarterfinals. Evans also spent two years as a graduate assistant at Texas (2015-2017) and one year as an assistant coach at Nichols (2014-2015). A 2012 graduate of Holy Cross with a bachelor's degree in economics, Evans scored 1,200 career points for the Crusaders and was named the 2009 Patriot League Rookie of the Year. He then played one post-graduate season at Connecticut in 2012-2013. Evans received a master's degree in educational psychology from Connecticut in 2013 and a master's degree in kinesiology from Texas in 2017. 

"One of my very first orders of business at Holy Cross was to convince R.J. to join my staff and continue to serve his alma mater," said Paulsen. "I have always had great respect for R.J., even though his 31-point performance as a freshman against my team continues to haunt me. As a player, R.J. was a fierce competitor and a phenomenal teammate. I have followed his coaching career closely and have always been impressed with his work ethic and professionalism. R.J. has been absolutely invaluable to our program during this transition and has worn the hats of three different people as I assembled my staff. No job has been too big, no task too small. I have been impressed with R.J.'s basketball mind, his passion for teaching the game and his ability to seamlessly adapt to a new system and philosophy. Quite simply, R.J. is a rising star in the profession."

"It is truly a blessing to be a part of Coach Paulsen's staff at Holy Cross," said Evans. "He has been someone I have had a great deal of respect for going back to his days at Williams and Bucknell. I can't wait to get to work with him and the rest of our coaching staff here on Mount St. James."

Holy Cross will be entering its first year under Paulsen in 2023-2024. 

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