Another day, another call that left Dan Hurley enraged.
Hurley’s UConn Huskies lost to the Colorado Buffaloes 73-72 at The Maui Invitational in the Lahaina Civic Center in Maui, Hawaii, on Tuesday. For the second day in a row, a critical call affected the game late.
UConn was leading 72-71 and Colorado had the ball. Javon Ruffin attempted a 3-pointer but missed it, though Colorado got a critical offensive rebound. Trevor Baskin fought off Liam McNeeley for the ball, and the Buffs won on an Andrej Jakimovski basket.
Hurley was livid that Baskin got away with going over McNeeley’s back for the offensive rebound.
Dan Hurley is fuming. UConn on the ropes right now. pic.twitter.com/uQ1EN1CS8S
— Kyle Boone (@kyletheboone) November 26, 2024
The incredible irony is that UConn lost the day before to Memphis when McNeeley was called for an over-the-back foul on a nearly identical play.
You Make The Call: Which one was actually over the back?
UConn loses on the same call that made Dan Hurley lose his mind last night. pic.twitter.com/6xY8w32mYU
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) November 26, 2024
Hurley was called for a costly technical foul after exploding over the foul call on Monday. A day later, UConn’s opponent got away with a similar move, and no foul was called.
During his postgame media conference, Hurley addressed the two calls.
“Today it was more egregious. Baskin pulled Liam’s arm down. I saw the replay of it. It’s ironic, but that’s not why … our defense has been just so dreadful. Just so dreadful,” Hurley lamented.
Dan Hurley postgame:
"Today's (no-call) felt more egregious. The kid pulled Liam McNeeley's arm down. I saw the replay of it. It's obviously ironic. But that's not why I think we lost. Our defense has been just, so dreadful. Just so dreadful." pic.twitter.com/V3iuN5ljnK
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) November 26, 2024
The loss knocked UConn into the 7th-place game at the tournament, which is not what they were expecting. The Huskies entered the event on a 17-game winning streak and have suddenly lost two games in a row.
