NEWARK, N.J. – Dan Hurley has gone to some bizarre lengths to protect the juju around his UConn men’s basketball program over the years.
So when he heard that a friend of UConn fan “Mediocre Dan” on X hired a witch off of the e-commerce website Etsy to remove the “curse” at Seton Hall’s home court, he couldn’t question it. The supernatural intervention didn’t seem to help much when UConn once again saw a large lead, 18 points in the second half, cut down to one in the final minute on Tuesday night. But the Huskies prevailed, putting the finishing touches on at the free throw line to win their first game over the Pirates at the Prudential Center since March 3, 2021.
“UConn fans are a different animal,” Hurley said as he walked across the court after beating his alma mater. “It’s not surprising, but what am I gonna say about it? I sage my court. I throw garlic under the bleachers. I mean, I’m a (bleeping) cartoon character, so I don’t know how I could pass judgement on some other bizarre (bleep).”
The witch, Sylvia, is based in Europe and has received over 100 five-star reviews, according to the Etsy page. That includes one from ‘Greg’, the friend of “Mediocre Dan,” who wrote: “Sylvia helped lift a 4 year hex on the UConn Men’s Basketball Team that had prevented them from winning at the Prudential Center in Newark. Sylvia performed the ritual within hours and UConn won their game 2 days later at the Prudential Center. Thank you Sylvia!”
My friend Greg (great guy) has hired an Etsy Witch to remove the curse at The Prudential Center.
*please do not tell the team about this ritual, per the Witch’s instructions.
UConn by 100 tonight. pic.twitter.com/f3MKItrQJL
— Mediocre Dan (UConn Fan) (@ItsMediocreDan) January 13, 2026
Screenshots posted to X revealed that Sylvia’s ritual “immediately detected a very heavy, jagged and ‘sticky’ energy surrounding the team’s aura when focused on the Prudential Center. It felt like a ‘Static Hex,’ a low-vibrational loop designed to trigger confusion and ‘comical’ errors at crucial moments. It was not just bad luck; it was a targeted energetic interference that has been feeding on the team’s past frustrations.”
Sylvia wrote that she performed a “hex removal” and that “the cycle of the past is broken; it is time for the champions to reclaim their path.”
Greg paid an additional amount for the “Triple Cast Shield” to protect from any other rituals, potentially from Seton Hall fans, reversing the spell.
UConn center Tarris Reed Jr. seemed to be affected most by whatever negative energy was still in the building. He played to the game plan by dominating inside early, where he scored 12 of the Huskies’ first 22 points, and finished with 21 points, nine rebounds and three blocks. But his performance at the free throw line, just 5-for-13, was the worst he’s ever had.
“Got away with the ‘W’ and it’s just a wake-up call now like, yo, you’ve got to be in the gym, shoot more free throws,” he said. “That’s not gonna happen to me down the road again. Just a fluke, 5-for-13, I’ve never shot that bad in a game ever. So going down the road, making an emphasis on my free throws, shoot 200-300 a day and keep it rolling from there.”
Reed said he did feel like the Huskies exorcised some demons in the win: “Especially going down the stretch, you’re thinking through your head like, “It’s not happening again.’ The first thing in my mind, they’re crawling back, they’re down six, cut the lead to four, it’s like, ‘Oh no, we’re not doing this again.’ I couldn’t do it again. Just really being poised down the stretch and relying on my teammates, that was the biggest thing for us.”
“Obviously the free throw shooting could’ve really…” Hurley said, switching his thought. “It could’ve been a 25 and 10 game, because he died on the glass late, where we just kept giving those guys second chances, which would be tough to watch. But he’s fully healthy, and those numbers versus those guys, 21 and nine versus Seton Hall, that’s different than getting 21 and nine versus some soft ass team. That’s real against those guys.”
Experience paid dividends down the stretch
Tuesday wasn’t the first time UConn found itself in a close game down the stretch this season. The Huskies saw a 20-point lead over BYU cut down to two in the final 20 seconds in Boston, they held on for a four-point win over Florida at MSG, fell short in a four-point loss to Arizona at Gampel Pavilion and came back from down 13 in the final minutes at Providence for an overtime victory last week.
“Just being able to be resilient and fight through that adversity late in the game, and knowing that we’re good. Like, even when they’re putting the pressure on us, we’ve just got to take a deep breath and breathe and know that we can still win this game,” said point guard Silas Demary Jr., who once again showed his poise in the critical moments and sealed Tuesday’s win at the free throw line.
Mullins’ defense comes up big
Braylon Mullins has been known as a great offensive player all his life, and it’s shown on a number of occasions during his freshman season with the Huskies. But his defense has quietly become an X-factor. He had three steals and two blocks on Tuesday, making it 10 “stocks” – six steals, four blocks, over the last two games, and swatted away a potential game-tying 3-point attempt with 17 seconds to play.
“Braylon’s just a special guy,” Hurley said. “He’s like the greatest kid to deal with. He just doesn’t care how many shots he gets, he’s quietly tough… He can stay at UConn as long as he wants. But the thing about him is he’s physically strong and he’s got a knack and a toughness going down the stretch of games.”
