Men's Basketball | 6/22/2022 2:01:00 PM

Utah Tech head men's basketball coach Jon Judkins announced on Wednesday the addition of Gibson Johnson to his coaching staff ahead of the upcoming 2022-23 season. 

Johnson returns to the Beehive State after a three-year stint with the men's basketball program at the University of Hawai'i, including serving as director of player development this past season. In that role, he oversaw the growth of the UH student-athletes, as well as worked in alumni relations, marketing, team nutrition, strength and conditioning, scouting, and recruiting.
 
Prior to that he was a graduate team manager for his alma mater for two seasons from 2019-21, this after he went back to the Islands following a one season as an assistant coach at Salt Lake Community College (2018-19).

"We are excited to complete our coaching staff with the addition of Coach Johnson, he has quality experience in every aspect of NCAA D-I coaching," Judkins said. "He brings a wealth of experience as an assistant, both at the D-I and junior college level. 
 
"He is also a proven recruiter with great connections both regionally and nationally," Judkins added. "He has a passion for the game and how to value his time with the student-athletes. We are very excited to have him join our team."
 
Johnson played two seasons at UH from 2016-18 and earned honorable mention all-Big West accolades as a junior. He finished his two-year career ranked ninth in Hawai'i program history in field goal percentage (.524). 
 
A native of Centerville, Utah, Johnson began his collegiate playing career at SLCC, where he was an all-region selection and helped lead the Bruins to the 2016 NJCAA national championship. 
 
"Coach Judkins is a legend in the Utah basketball community and has done a great job building up [the Utah Tech] program for the last 18 years from junior college to Division I," said Johnson. "I couldn't be more excited to join him and the Utah Tech Basketball family. I hope to add to the program's continued excellence as we transition into a Division-I power."
 
Johnson earned a Bachelor's degree in Communication at Hawai'i in 2018, and completed work on his Master's degree in Education at UH in 2021. He and his wife Kirsten are the parents of one son, Kai. 

Utah Tech (then Dixie State) wrapped up its second season of NCAA Division I play with a 13-18 overall record, five wins more than the Trailblazers' posted in their D-I debut campaign last year. The Blazers finished with a 10-6 record inside the Burns Arena, and wound up 6-12 in WAC play, which was good for 10^th place in the conference standings.