RALEIGH, N.C. – The trip home after the UConn men’s basketball team was eliminated by No. 1 seed Florida in the Round of 32 will involve some major self-reflection from head coach Dan Hurley.
It was the end to a rollercoaster of a season and while the Huskies went out fighting, a second round exit wasn’t an ideal end to a season that began with expectations of contending for a historic third-straight national title.
“I think the regrets that you have, for us… When you’re on the bus ride home, you’re probably thinking more about Maui, and you’re thinking more about – not to just torture yourself, but the things that put us in position, the things that went on during the year that put us in the eight, nine seed line,” Hurley said. “Leaving a disastrous nonconference play as I think a 12 NET, and then going 14-6 in the league and dropping 20 spots.”
UConn did not play like a No. 8 seed in the Florida game, losing 77-75 to the SEC Tournament champs, who improved to 32-4 on the year. But the number looked more accurate in the first round against No. 9 Oklahoma, a game the Huskies survived, 67-59, but wasn’t exactly pretty.
UConn men’s basketball’s upset bid falls short as Huskies eliminated by No. 1 seed Florida, 77-75
Hurley’s fifth NCAA Tournament experience with the Huskies summed up a season of high ceilings and low floors, of playing to the level of the opponent and never reaching that “bulletproof” standard that was set the last two years.
“There’s so much that goes into when you win it. Not just when you win it, when you win it twice you get pulled in so many different directions. Your offseasons, you don’t have as much time to be the coach at UConn, preparing for next season, and then just a lot of things that distract you,” Hurley said. “And then you have no idea what’s coming for you in terms of the scrutiny. You think you’re gonna become this beloved figure when you are as successful as we’ve been and do the things that haven’t been done in a long time, historical things.
“The envy, the jealousy, the constant critiques, I don’t think I was prepared for that. This is gonna be, I think for me, I think it’s gonna be an offseason where I’m able to do some rewiring and a lot of soul-searching and I’ll come back as a much-improved coach.”
The transfer portal is set to open on Monday, and Hurley and his staff will be able to sit down and take their time assessing their needs with who is coming and who might be going, rather than doing so while also coaching a team on an NCAA Tournament run.
It will be a new climb.
“I didn’t enjoy the destination as much. I love the process, I love the climb to get where we are and now where we were as this run has ended. And I’m excited to get back on the pursuit,” Hurley said. “The destination wasn’t as much fun. You just become a target, a target for a lot of things.”
Dom Amore: For Dan Hurley, UConn men, a painful, but honorable end to their historic era
Hurley caught in another viral moment
As he walked off the court following the loss, Hurley couldn’t contain his frustration with the officiating.
With Baylor about to take the court for its second round matchup in Raleigh against the East Region’s No. 1 seed Duke, Hurley was caught on video saying, “I hope they don’t (expletive) you like they (expletive) us. I hope they don’t do that to you, Baylor.”
Hurley was seemingly upset with a no-call on a layup attempt from Alex Karaban just before Florida went on its run to win the game. “There was a lot of contact there,” he said in his postgame press conference.
UConn to announce ‘exciting’ games soon
Hurley was asked on Saturday about the potential of scheduling more games against traditional blue bloods, whether they be home-and-home series or neutral site events.
“We would like to,” he said. “For us obviously everything has changed in terms of less MTEs and more wanting to do a couple of single game (events at) MSG or somewhere big, somewhere in Chicago for a single game, and then home-and-homes. We reach out to Kentucky. We reach out for Duke and Carolina, Kansas. We’re trying to schedule those exciting home and homes or neutral site events that just get people’s attention for college basketball November and December. Playing games like that, I think are just great for the sport and we want to play them.
“We have reached out, and we’ll be announcing some exciting ones that we’ll be playing, but it takes two to tango.”
Quick hits
UConn started Sunday’s game missing 11 of its first 12 shots from the field until sophomore Jaylin Stewart hit a 3-pointer to take the lid off. Stewart finished with six points, a rebound and a block. His stepfather, Jamar Jones, posted a video on X after the game thanking UConn “for these two years we’ve been here. We’ve been treated like family, it’s been good, it’s a great school.” … An emotional Samson Johnson thanked Hurley after playing his final game at UConn: “He believed in me when not even I believed in myself. He taught me so much on and off the court, he’s one of the most impactful people in my life.”
Originally Published: March 23, 2025 at 7:15 PM EDT
