The Mercyhurst men’s basketball team has announced the hiring of two assistant coaches for the 2013-14 season. A.J. Bender and Dwan McMillan will be on Coach Gary Manchel’s staff this year.

Bender played basketball at Mount Aloysius College in Cresson, Pennsylvania. He graduated in 2007 with a degree in business administration. Bender earned his Master’s at California (Pa.) in 2012.

From 2009 to 2013, he served as the assistant coach at Mount Aloysius. In the 2012-13 campaign, MAC had its most successful season in program history, winning 16 games. With the Mounties, Bender had a hand in scouting, strategy, and personal workouts. He also worked as a camp counselor at a number of schools, including Clemson University.

As a player at MAC, the native of Oakland, Maryland, set the school’s career steals record and led the conference in takeaways as a senior.

McMillan is a 2012 graduate of Hofstra University. He majored in liberal arts with a physical education minor. McMillan has worked at several instructional camps at various levels.

The Brooklyn, New York, native helped Hofstra to the 2011 College Basketball Invitational. He guided the Pride to 14 conference wins and a second-place finish in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) during the 2010-11 season. As a senior, McMillan led the CAA in assists per game. Off the court, he garnered CAA All-Academic First Team honors following the 2011-12 campaign.

Stay with HoopDirt for the latest college basketball coaching news and rumors.