And a guy from Jersey with a short fuse who officiates like most elite college basketball coaches.
Hurley had thoughts of officiating long before the No. 2 University Huskies flew to Hawaii for the Maui Invitational. tell the reporter Last week, he said, he became keenly aware that their opponents in the lower majors were reaching the front line better than they were, despite the obvious differences in size and talent.
UW got an objectively bad whistle in Monday’s opener against Memphis. But Hurley has to do a better job of controlling his anger in close game situations. Hurley committed a technical foul in overtime, resulting in a 99-97 loss for UW.
Let’s set the scene. In an epic back-and-forth game between the Huskies and Tigers, UW’s Solo Ball hit a triple in the final seconds of regulation to send the game into overtime. The Huskies quickly erased a three-point lead with a 3-pointer from Colby Rogers, and Liam McNeely was called up for UW’s next trip. over-the-back foul Never mind that McNeely is about five inches farther than a Memphis player when reaching for an offensive rebound.
Harley blows a gasket on a nearby employee. His associate head coach Kimani Young has to play the role of get-back coach, but Hurley fell to the ground at one point and said enough words to get T’d to his feet. Memphis made four free throws instead of two, and P.J. Carter sank them all.
UConn lost by two points, but Hurley told CBS Sports It wasn’t his technique that made the difference.
“I think that was a call from me,” he added. A type of flute. ”
Even on the podium after the game, Memphis players didn’t hit the brakes, saying, “We made a half-hearted effort to rebound that basketball, and Liam McNeely hit that rebound with a high point.”
As for why he fell to the floor, Hurley said, “I don’t know what happened. Maybe the irrational phone call caused me to lose my balance.” “Or maybe I tripped.”
And importantly, I agree that he’s right about that call. Most reasonable people on Basketball Twitter (or Bluesky) do. But Hurley, of course, was convinced his blueblooded husky was being disrespected and allowed the referee to call it from the jump. There was a technical call on the University bench early in the game, but Hurley later said the mild-mannered medical trainer “must have said something under his breath in the crowd.” That’s right, Jean.
Call me a pearl clutcher all you want, but they gave Hurley a long lead the whole game, and the umpires let him stand up late in overtime as he seemed to keep shouting obscenities. There was ample right and reason.
No one I know likes when a bad referee takes over a game. By the way, this isn’t unique to college basketball, and I’m 100% in favor of holding bad referees and referees more accountable. However, as a coach who is trying to leave his name as one of the greats of our time, I wish he had taken more responsibility, even after the fact.
If you’re known as someone who is always furious, you might not be taken seriously when something really terrible happens to you.
