UConn fans had Dan Hurley’s back during the Elite Eight of March Madness on Saturday evening. They made their presence felt after a bad call shortly before halftime.
TD Garden was extremely loud!
The top-ranked Huskies received a favorable draw when they were placed in the Boston region for the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Campus is just 90 minutes from Beantown and the two states (Connecticut and Massachusetts) border one another. That cannot be said for Illinois, whose fanbase had to travel 16 hours by car or hop on a plane.
As a result, UConn fans outnumbered the Fighting Illini faithful about 5-to-1. Seriously. It might as well have been a home game at Gampel north! They were able to make their voices heard.
Tristen Newton, who actually went 0-for-6 in the first half, was bumped by an Illinois defender as he made a runner with 59 seconds on the clock. The foul was called on the floor even though the 6-foot-5 senior guard was in motion. It should have been a shooting foul— an “and one.”
That was not what was called and Hurley was livid. He unleashed fury on the nearest official, which he is known to do from time to time. As he did, the Huskies fans in attendance let boos rain down from the stands.
Of course, that was not Hurley’s only complaint of the evening. The ever-colorful 51-year-old head coach made sure that the referees were aware of his presence. He let them have it at every opportunity!
Even the worst of lip readers can figure out what was said right here:
I'm no professional lip reader, but I'm pretty sure Dan Hurley just wished the official a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. pic.twitter.com/0I0b1lQAeK
— Kyle Boone (@kyletheboone) March 30, 2024
Dan Hurley continues to be something of an old-school coach in a modern era of college basketball. Whether you like him or not, his presence on the sideline never fails to provide top-notch entertainment.
And… he wins!