2024-2025 Ivy Coaching Staff of the Year
DAVID MCLAUGHLIN,
Head Coach
The 2025-26 season marks David McLaughlin’s tenth year (ninth season) on the sidelines as Dartmouth head coach. He was named the 28th head coach of the Big Green men’s basketball program on April 25, 2016.
“Dartmouth College is unique, even within the unique nature of the Ivy League,” said McLaughlin. “It’s the only college in the Ivy League and has an undergraduate focus. The community is real, the culture of support for each other — both in the athletic realm and the campus community — is real, and we extend that to our program.
“I feel that we are truly relationship-based and developmental-based in terms of wanting our guys to improve on a daily basis, and we tie that into what they’re getting on campus every day as well,” McLaughlin continued. “That’s seen through our core values, which is Be A Pro.”
Be A Pro is an acronym that stands for Belief, Excellence, Accountability, Positivity, Relationships and Ownership.
Under the leadership of McLaughlin, the Big Green are on the rise. Most recently, during the 2024-25 season, McLaughlin and his staff led Dartmouth to their first Ivy Madness appearance and proven improvement solely based off record alone. The team went from winning six games in the 2023-24 season to winning 14 in the 2024-25 regular season while matching their six wins from the previous season in the non-conference slate alone. The regular season .519 overall win percentage and .571 conference win percentage marks the first time the program has finished above .500 in its overall record and league record since the 1999 season. McLaughlin coached his team to success and it showed at the conclusion of the season when Ryan Cornish '25 was named First Team All-Ivy and Brandon Mitchell-Day was named Second Team All-Ivy.
In 2021-22, Dartmouth finished 6-8 in Ivy League play, just one game out of the Ivy League Tournament. Those six league victories were the program’s most since recording seven in 2014-15, and marked Dartmouth’s second most league victories in the previous 12 seasons. Defensively, the Big Green led the Ivy League in allowing just 68.2 points per game. The Big Green also beat third-seeded Penn and fourth-seeded Cornell during the regular season.
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JABARI TROTTER, Assistant Coach
Jabari Trotter returned to Dartmouth men’s basketball team in 2021 for his third tour of duty with the program. A 2012 Dartmouth graduate with a degree in sociology, Trotter was originally a combo guard for the Big Green, playing in the second-most games in program history (112), starting 80 contests, and averaging 6.9 points while converting 102 3-pointers, one of less than 20 in program history to reach triple digits.
“We are thrilled that Jabari decided to come back here,” said head coach David McLaughlin. “The impact he’s had this time has been just fantastic. I’ve really appreciated how much he grew as a coach in his time apart, his time away from Dartmouth when he was at Hawaii. I’ve been able to witness that first-hand. I have a lot of faith in him and I’m excited that he’s now our recruiting coordinator. I put a lot of faith in how he understands Dartmouth and how he understands the staff.”
Most recently, in 2024-25, the team saw its first Ivy Madness appearance. The team went from winning six games in the 2023-24 season to winning 14 in the 2024-25 regular season while matching their six wins from the previous season in the non-conference slate alone. The regular season .519 overall win percentage and .571 conference win percentage marks the first time the program has finished above .500 in its overall record and league record since the 1999 season. Trotter, with David McLaughlin at the helm, coached the team to success and it showed at the conclusion of the season when Ryan Cornish '25 was named First Team All-Ivy, Dartmouth’s first player to receive this recognition since 2009, and Brandon Mitchell-Day was named Second Team All-Ivy.
Cornish’s historic senior season was highlighted by several key moments, including when he joined the 1,000 point club and finished his Dartmouth career with 1,014 points. He averaged 17.1 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, while adding 88 total assists and finishing with a 38.7% three-point field goal percentage. Cornish is tied for 29th in most points scored by a Big Green men’s basketball player and was awarded Second Team All-District at the end of his senior season.
Trotter also led the development of Connor Admundsen ‘28, who was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week five times, the most since Miles Wright in the 2014-15 season. Admundsen averaged 10.5 points per game and had 87 assists overall, the second highest of the team.
Trotter oversaw the defense, which boasted a No. 1 ranking in the Ivy League and rose as high as 98th nationally, according to KenPom. Dartmouth was No. 10 in defensive rebounding percentage, ranked tenth in free throws/field goals attempted, and held a No. 7 ranking in defensive three-point field goal percentage. After a historic 2024-25 campaign, the Big Green staff was awarded Ivy League Coaching Staff of the Year.
In his return to Dartmouth in 2021-22, Trotter worked closely with the guards and helped develop Brendan Barry, who was named second team All-Ivy League and finished as the Big Green all-time 3-point record holder (244). Trotter helped the Big Green to six Ivy League victories, its most in seven seasons, and played an integral role in running the defense, which led the Ivy League in allowing just 68.2 points per game. Dartmouth finished just one game out of an Ivy League Tournament position, while beating third-seeded Penn and fourth-seeded Cornell during the regular season. In the regular-season finale, the Big Green earned a 22-point triumph over Harvard, their largest margin of victory over the Crimson in 30 years and largest on the road since 1955.
“In my eyes, Jabari is our staff manager,” said McLaughlin. “He takes pride in that role, and he is passionate about managing and being a mentor to the staff. Beyond that, I feel like Jabari’s experience being a student-athlete here really impacts how he can build relationships with guys and how he can recruit at a place like Dartmouth. It really helps his overall impact of teaching the game on the floor. These are just a few of Jabari’s foundational qualities that will enable him to be a head coach in the near future.”
Trotter returned to his alma mater after three years as an assistant coach at the University of Hawaii, where the Rainbow Warriors finished 46-26 during his time. There, he oversaw the development of the wing players while also focusing on rebounding and transition, helping the 'Bows finish top 30 nationally in rebounding margin in his first season. Trotter also coached All-Big West player Jack Purchase and was instrumental in the development of Samuta Avea from a reserve to the team's second-leading scorer in 2019-20. In Trotter’s time at Hawaii, he recruited Princeton transfer Jerome Desrosiers, who became an All-Conference selection for the Rainbow Warriors. Trotter worked with the wings, as Junior Madut was an All-Big West selection and part of Trotter’s player development group, as was Purchase, who garnered second team All-Conference honors.
In 2016, Trotter was part of the first coaching staff at Dartmouth under McLaughlin and spent two years on the staff in his initial return to Hanover. He was responsible for practice and game preparation, player development and scouting, and served as co-coordinator for recruiting.
Trotter began his collegiate coaching career at Lehigh in 2015-16. That season, the Mountain Hawks went 13-5 in the Patriot League, earned the No. 2 seed and hosted the league championship game. Late in the year, Lehigh reeled off 11 straight victories to tie a program record. Tim Kempton repeated as Patriot League Player of the Year while Kahron Ross was named to the first team as a sophomore, and Austin Price garnered third-team recognition.
Between his graduation and first coaching gig with the Green, Trotter traveled to Dublin, Ireland, to play professional basketball with the Dublin Thunder BC while coaching the KUBS U17 girls basketball team and the Lady Haroldites of the Ireland Division II Women’s League. He also enrolled in the Dublin Business School, from which he received a master’s in business management practice in 2014.
Upon returning to the United States, Trotter was hired at his post-graduate school, Phillips Exeter Academy, as an admissions office intern and assistant for the boys’ basketball team.
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RYAN KAPUSTKA, Assistant Coach
Ryan Kapustka joined the Big Green staff in August 2024 as the Director of Basketball Operations and enters his second season with the team going into the 2025-26 season.
“I am thrilled with the addition of Ryan to our staff. He has extensive experience that will add extreme value to many aspects of our program. He is a student of the game, values relationships, is selfless, and no job is to big or small for him to attack. He is the final piece of what I believe is an extremely strong and talented staff!” said Head Coach David McLaughlin.
Before Dartmouth, Kapustka was the Director of Scouting and Assistant Coach at the University of Illinois-Chicago. He was the co-recruiting coordinator along with being heavily involved in on court player development and leading all video and scouting aspects of the program. He also served as the assistant offensive coordinator where he was instrumental in the Flames offense being 62nd in the nation in 3FG%, 4th in the conference in 3FG made and 5th in the conference in assists. Kapustka played a key role in player development as the Flames set school records in GPA as well as Toby Okani earning 1st team All-Defense and Filip Skobalj earning 1st team Scholar-Athlete.
Kapustka started with UIC as the team’s Director of Basketball Operations. In that role, he was in charge of travel logistics, budget, gear, scheduling future opponents, camp director, official visit logistics and was the liaison to all departments within the athletic department. He once again played a big role in player development which led Jace Carter to being named second-team all-MVC and Filip Skobalj 1st team Scholar-Athlete. Kapustka served as the assistant offensive coordinator where the Flames were nationally ranked 47th in three-pointers attempted and 77th in tempo.
Kapustka joined the Flames after spending the prior four years with Rice University’s men’s basketball program. After serving as a graduate manager for the Owls his first two seasons, Kapustka was elevated to the program’s Director of Operations for his final two years in Houston.
In his final year the Owls went 16-17 including a CBI postseason berth which was the first postseason appearance since 2016-2017. Over his tenure, the Owls won 15 or more games in three straight seasons which is only the third time the program has done so in the last 75 years. The Owls also won conference tournament games in back-to-back seasons, the first time since 2005. As assistant offensive coordinator, the Owls had one of the top offenses in C-USA. In his final season the Owls were first or second in the conference in the following offensive categories: assist percentage, total assists, assists per game, three-pointers made, three-pointers per game, three-pointers attempted, and effective field goal percentage.
In his role with Rice, Kapustka oversaw day-to-day scheduling, coordinating travel logistics and official visit procedures, serving as the liaison to compliance, facilities and other athletic programs. Additionally, Kapustka managed the budget and student-manager program while also overseeing the team’s student-athlete development. Under his watch, the Owls posted a program record GPA during the 2021-22 season.
During his two seasons as a graduate manager for Rice, Kapustka helped prepare scouting reports for the coaching staff and provided daily individual workouts for the team. He also assisted the Director of Operations in completing expense reports, team budgets, travel logistics, equipment organization, game day operations and scheduling for future seasons.
Kapustka earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan in 2018 in sport management. At Michigan, he served as a head manager under Coach John Beilein for 4 years, where they won back-to-back Big Ten Tournament titles in 2017 and 2018 along with a national championship appearance in 2018 and setting a program record 33 wins.
A native of Grand Rapids, Mich., Kapustka and his wife, Maggie, have a daughter, Kaia.
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TAURUS SAMUELS, Assistant Coach
Taurus Samuels joined the Big Green coaching staff as an Assistant Coach in August 2024 and enters his second season on staff in the 2025-26 season.
In Samuels' first season as a coach with Dartmouth, the team saw their first Ivy Madness appearance. The team went from winning six games in the 2023-24 season to winning 14 in the 2024-25 regular season while matching their six wins from the previous season in the non-conference slate alone. The regular season .519 overall win percentage and .571 conference win percentage marks the first time the program has finished above .500 in its overall record and league record since the 1999 season. Samuels, with David McLaughlin at the helm, coached the team to success and it showed at the conclusion of the season when Ryan Cornish '25 was named First Team All-Ivy and Brandon Mitchell-Day was named Second Team All-Ivy.
Samuels returns to the Big Green men’s basketball program after being a student-athlete from 2018-2022. He played four seasons with Dartmouth, with one of the seasons being cut short due to COVID-19. He was a two-year starter and was a Co-Captain his senior year.
“I am absolutely thrilled to welcome Taurus back to Dartmouth and the Upper Valley. His impact during his career as a student-athlete both on and off the court was incredibly impressive in so many ways. As teammate, leader, and positive member of the Dartmouth community, Taurus left a legacy that was present within our program even after his graduation,” said McLaughlin.
As a student-athlete with the Big Green, Samuels aided in taking down Big East opponent Georgetown his senior year by scoring a career high 23 points, which included six field goals beyond the arc. Also in his senior season, Samuels finished second on the team with 30 3-pointers, third in free throws made (42), and assists (40). The same year, he was the recipient of the John Di Iorio Award for hustle, drive and determination. As a first year, Samuels made an impact right away when he was chosen as the team’s Doggie Julian Award winner for spirit and enthusiasm. Throughout Samuels’ time with the Big Green, the team saw positive growth in conference wins each season. To read more on Samuels’ Dartmouth career, click HERE.
After graduating, he transferred to the University of Minnesota, where he played his final year of eligibility as a Graduate Student, obtaining his Master of Education in Sports Management. Samuels was elected Co-Captain of the team prior to the start of the 2022-2023 season. He played in 28 games, starting 13 of them, and played a vital role in mentoring the underclassmen, specifically the guards.
Prior to Dartmouth, Samuels worked as an Investor Relations Analyst for an advisory firm, Teneo, in New York City. As an analyst, he monitored sell-side equity analyst coverage of the company’s clients, along with market indicators/trends that impact clients and competitors using different tools and inputs. He also tracked the capital markets and provided deep analysis of major events such as earnings calls, investor days, conferences, or major announcements to keep senior management and client teams as informed as possible.
“Taurus was one of the best leaders I have had the pleasure to coach. Some of the qualities that he had as a player, and will bring as a coach include; his infectious personality, a selfless approach and belief in others, a competitive edge that allows him to hold himself and others accountable, and an amazing talent to value and build relationships. These qualities will be significant additions to our program and be the foundation for what is going to be a phenomenal coaching career,” added McLaughlin.
Samuels is originally from Oceanside, CA – a city in North County San Diego. He graduated from Dartmouth College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology in 2022.
WHAT ARE THEY SAYING?
“Taurus possesses all the qualities you would want on a coaching staff. He is a leader, tremendous communicator, relationship builder, and loyal son of Dartmouth. I’m thrilled he’s back in Hanover! He is a great addition to the Big Green program!” – Dartmouth ‘79, former Northeastern Director of Athletics and former Dartmouth Interim Director of Athletics, Peter Roby
“Great hire by Coach McLaughlin and Dartmouth College. Taurus is a connector with infectious energy and passion for people. Taurus has an extremely bright future; I look forward to watching him make an impact in winning games and Dartmouth basketball overall!” – University of Minnesota Men’s Basketball Head Coach, Ben Johnson
“Taurus Samuels embodied the mission of Dartmouth College when he was a student-athlete by preparing himself for a lifetime of responsible leadership through his leadership development within DP2 and Dartmouth Athletics. Now Taurus has the opportunity to prepare future Big Green student-athletes for that same mission as an Assistant Coach. Taurus is an elite communicator and embodies so many characteristics of successful coaches in his habits and high level of self-discipline and accountability. I am excited to welcome Taurus Samuels back to The Woods.” - Corrigan Family Assistant Athletics Director for Leadership and Mental Performance, Stephen Gonzalez
“We are very excited that Taurus is back at Dartmouth. It only took a few recruiting phone calls into his junior year of high school to see that Taurus was a natural born leader who would leave a lasting impression on our program and this college. Fast forward seven years later and our former captain is ready to take on a new challenge on the bench and on the recruiting trails. His love for Dartmouth will be seen in many facets and our current student-athletes will benefit greatly from his return.” – Dartmouth Men’s Basketball Assistant Coach and Recruiting Coordinator, Jabari Trotter
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DYLAN SORTILLO, Director of Basketball Operations
SSortillo joins the Big Green from Florida Southwestern State College where he acted as an assistant men's basketball coach. During his year stint in Fort Myers, Sortillo assisted with strategic game plans to enhance team performance that led to top 10 national rankings in defensive field goal percentage, rebounding and blocked shots.
"I am beyond grateful to be joining the Dartmouth men's basketball program and look forward to contributing to the holistic development of our student-athletes — fostering leadership, character, and meaningful impact, both on and off the court," said Sortillo.
Prior to Florida Southwestern, Sortillo was the director of basketball operations at the University of Illinois Chicago for the 2023-24 season. With the Flames, he managed daily operations of the program including travel logistics, practice scheduling, budgeting, equipment procurement, compliance and alumni relations. In the season prior, Sortillo was a graduate assistant with the Flames where he focused on player development, analyzing film and leading daily 1-on-1s with the athletes. Kapustka overlapped with Sortillo at UIC for two seasons, with Kapustka serving as assistant coach during Sortillo's tenure with the Flames.
"We are thrilled that Dylan has joined The Big Green," said McLaughlin. "He brings a winning pedigree and his diverse experience will bring immediate added value to our program and department. His positive mindset and selfless approach are evident each day. These qualities, along with the way he values relationships, will be a huge factor in the development of our players. He understands the value of holding our guys accountable, while having a relentless approach each day. Personally, I am excited to see the impact he will have."
Sortillo played college basketball at Augustana College in Illinois where he was a 1,000-point scorer for the Vikings, ending his career with 1,075. He drained 184 three-point field goals, which landed him third in program history at the time of his graduation in May of 2018. Sortillo played in two national championship games and four conference championship teams. He went on to begin his coaching career at Augustana as assistant coach from August, 2020 to July, 2022.