UConn’s Dan Hurley rips refs again after loss to Colorado, blaming ‘terrible’ defense | News, results, highlights, stats and gossip

LAHAINA, HAWAII – NOVEMBER 25: Head coach Dan Hurley of the Connecticut Huskies gestures to his players during the first half of the Maui Invitational against the Memphis Tigers at the Lahaina Civic Center on November 25, 2024 in Lahaina, Hawaii. (Photo: Darryl Oumi/Getty Images)

Darryl Oumi/Getty Images

Organizers of the 2024 Maui Invitational probably won’t get many holiday cards from UConn head coach Dan Hurley.

Hurley was assessed a critical technical foul in the final minute of Monday’s overtime loss to Memphis while protesting a cross-call on Liam McNeeley. He certainly had that in mind on Tuesday, when officials didn’t call a potential foul on Colorado after it grabbed an offensive rebound and kept possession of the ball for the final 30 seconds.

UConn’s assistant coaches had to keep Hurley from protesting too much after Tuesday’s missed call, and the coach was certainly even more upset when the possession ended with Colorado scoring what turned out to be the game-winning basket in a 73-72 victory.

Hurley called Tuesday’s lack of conversation “more egregious” and “ironic,” though he blamed his team’s “terrible” defense for the loss:

Box 68 @Field68

Dan Hurley after the match:
“Today’s conversation (no conversation) was more scandalous. The kid pulled Liam McNeeley’s arm. I saw the replay. This is, of course, ironic. But that’s not why I think we lost. Our defense was just, so terrible. Just terrible.” pic.twitter.com/V3iuN5ljnK

The fact that he blamed the defense rather than the referees for the final result was a change from Monday’s result.

He was finally asked if he believed his technical foul, and two free throws cost his team the game against Memphis as the Tigers won by two points and he told reporters“I think they were shitty conversations. I expected to come to play at an event, and I don’t know many teams competing for a national championship that would get a whistle like that.”

He didn’t stop there and continued to criticize the officials after Monday’s defeat:

Box 68 @Field68

Dan Hurley’s thoughts on today’s referees:
“I had a lot of problems with what was happening. That back call… the Memphis player made a rough effort, Liam McNeeley hit it high and it had to be called… it was a complete joke, I could have lost… pic.twitter.com/w5AxFsZF5d

However, Tuesday’s match had a different character.

Although the back call would have been a key event at that point, considering there were less than 30 seconds left in the game and the Huskies had a one-point lead, one uncalled call did not determine the outcome of the entire game.

On the contrary, UConn blew a double-digit lead against the team it was supposed to beat. If he hadn’t taken the proverbial foot off the pedal and allowed the Buffaloes back into the game, the lack of a call wouldn’t have taken on so much significance.

The Huskies also continued to lead when Colorado fell on a controversial offensive rebound. They still had an opportunity to make a defensive stop and secure the victory, but instead they allowed Andrej Jakimovski to drive the lane and score the winning basket.

Hurley’s team also could have scored in the last seconds after a basket by Jakimowski, but Hassan Diarra’s three-pointer was missed.

The head coach himself admitted that the defense, which allowed Colorado to shoot 51.1% from the field and 56.3% from deep, was a bigger problem than the officiating in influencing the outcome of the game.

Fortunately for the Huskies, they still have plenty of time to turn things around this season, even after back-to-back early losses.