# 2023–24 Holy Cross Crusaders men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Holy Cross Crusaders men's basketball team represented the College of the Holy Cross during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Crusaders, led by first-year head coach Dave Paulsen, played their home games at the Hart Center located in Worcester, Massachusetts as members of the Patriot League.

## Previous season

The Crusaders finished the 2022–23 season 10–22, 7–11 in Patriot League play to finish in a four-way tie for sixth place. As the No. 9 seed in the Patriot League tournament, they lost to Loyola (MD) in the first round.
On March 10, 2023, the school fired head coach Brett Nelson. On March 28, the school named Fordham assistant coach Dave Paulsen the team's new head coach.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season ||||||
| November 6, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Siena | L 71–73 | 0–1 | MVP Arena (4,474) Albany, NY |
| November 11, 2023* 8:00 pm, FS2 | | at Georgetown | W 68–67 | 1–1 | Capital One Arena (7,621) Washington, D.C. |
| November 14, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Sacred Heart | L 77–84 | 1–2 | Hart Center (1,176) Worcester, MA |
| November 17, 2023* 5:00 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. Winthrop Winthrop Invitational | L 51–89 | 1–3 | Rock Hill Sports & Event Center (909) Rock Hill, SC |
| November 18, 2023* 7:30 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. Elon Winthrop Invitational | L 69–83 | 1–4 | Rock Hill Sports & Event Center (711) Rock Hill, SC |
| November 19, 2023* 12:00 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. IUPUI Winthrop Invitational | W 74–61 | 2–4 | Rock Hill Sports & Event Center (944) Rock Hill, SC |
| November 25, 2023* 7:00 pm, FS2 | | at St. John's | L 45–91 | 2–5 | Carnesecca Arena (5,602) Queens, NY |
| November 29, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Maine | L 57–72 | 2–6 | Hart Center (777) Worcester, MA |
| December 2, 2023* 1:00 pm, NEC Front Row | | at Central Connecticut | L 67–78 | 2–7 | William H. Detrick Gymnasium (1,021) New Britain, CT |
| December 8, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+/ACCNX | | at Boston College | L 64–95 | 2–8 | Conte Forum (4,866) Chestnut Hill, MA |
| December 18, 2023* 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Quinnipiac | L 57–77 | 2–9 | Hart Center (654) Worcester, MA |
| December 21, 2023* 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Harvard | L 72–74 | 2–10 | Lavietes Pavilion (1,124) Cambridge, MA |
| December 29, 2023* 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Elms | W 88–60 | 3–10 | Hart Center (993) Worcester, MA |
| Patriot League regular season ||||||
| January 3, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Bucknell | L 58–70 | 3–11 (0–1) | Sojka Pavilion (824) Lewisburg, PA |
| January 6, 2024 1:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Army | L 57–70 | 3–12 (0–2) | Christl Arena (500) West Point, NY |
| January 10, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Navy | L 70–80 | 3–13 (0–3) | Hart Center (646) Worcester, MA |
| January 13, 2024 5:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Lehigh | W 69–66 $^{OT}$ | 4–13 (1–3) | Stabler Arena (728) Bethlehem, PA |
| January 17, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Lafayette | L 68–72 | 4–14 (1–4) | Hart Center (692) Worcester, MA |
| January 20, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Loyola (MD) | W 86–78 | 5–14 (2–4) | Hart Center (876) Worcester, MA |
| January 24, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at American | L 65–84 | 5–15 (2–5) | Bender Arena (876) Washington, D.C. |
| January 27, 2024 12:00 pm, CBSSN | | Lehigh | L 72–78 | 5–16 (2–6) | Hart Center (1,063) Worcester, MA |
| January 29, 2024 7:00 pm, CBSSN | | Boston University Turnpike Trophy | W 65–63 | 6–16 (3–6) | Hart Center (2,364) Worcester, MA |
| February 3, 2024 5:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Loyola (MD) | W 70–67 | 7–16 (4–6) | Reitz Arena (480) Baltimore, MD |
| February 7, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Lafayette | L 59–75 | 7–17 (4–7) | Kirby Sports Center (1,241) Easton, PA |
| February 10, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | American | W 58–56 | 8–17 (5–7) | Hart Center (1,791) Worcester, MA |
| February 14, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Colgate | L 55–85 | 8–18 (5–8) | Cotterell Court (546) Hamilton, NY |
| February 17, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Army | L 53–59 | 8–19 (5–9) | Hart Center (1,717) Worcester, MA |
| February 21, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Bucknell | W 73–59 | 9–19 (6–9) | Hart Center (1,469) Worcester, MA |
| February 25, 2024 2:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Navy | L 66–76 | 9–20 (6–10) | Alumni Hall (2,537) Annapolis, MD |
| February 28, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | | Colgate | L 58–77 | 9–21 (6–11) | Hart Center (1,077) Worcester, MA |
| March 2, 2024 12:00 pm, ESPN+ | | at Boston University Turnpike Trophy | L 84–94 | 9–22 (6–12) | Case Gym Boston, MA |
| Patriot League tournament ||||||
| March 5, 2024 6:00 pm, ESPN+ | (9) | at (8) Army First round | W 84–68 | 10–22 | Christl Arena (170) West Point, NY |
| March 7, 2024 7:00 pm, ESPN+ | (9) | at (1) Colgate Quarterfinals | L 64–81 | 10–23 | Cotterell Court (1,405) Hamilton, NY |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern. ||||||
Sources: