“There’s a certain level of shame that comes with losing and it’s devastating for me when we’re losing,” Hurley said Tuesday after practice at Gampel Pavilion, where on Wednesday his 24th-ranked Huskies march deeper into the Big East house of mirrors with a
game against Seton Hall, his alma mater. “I find it hard to breathe. When you know that could happen to you, if you lose — hence my sideline energy and intensity.”
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Hurley screamed, chest-bumped Jalen Adams and barely acknowledged Jim Boeheim after a victory over Syracuse in Nov. 2018 at Madison Square Garden, an early sign of a new direction and an early step toward UConn building a certain identity. Hurley acknowledged his demeanor numerous times that season, saying his approach had to do with establishing the program’s energy and that he’d be much calmer in years three and four.
It’s Year 4. Hurley has been as animated as ever. It’s what makes him successful. It’s what makes him controversial. It’s also what bonds him with players who have helped him turn UConn back into a winner.
“After my freshman year, when Coach Ollie got fired, that was one of my main reasons for staying,” senior forward Isaiah Whaley said. “I saw the way he coached and I wanted to play for a coach like that. I loved his energy. Jersey guy. They don’t back down. We’ve all taken up that identity as well.”
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“When we’re not playing well that tends to get directed at the officials out of frustration, which then creates that scene, which I desperately would like to avoid,” Hurley said. “But really, you feel like you’re fighting for your life on game night. So when you’re fighting for your life, it’s fight or flight and I fight my ass off.”
“I hadn’t had a technical this year until the Villanova game,” Hurley said. “My comments, which I never should have made after the Xavier game about the officiating, has created a narrative that has not been accurate for this year. … Obviously, I’ve come unhinged at different points, recently, but this is very intense, what we’re doing. There’s a lot of pressure on all of us to perform and to succeed here. Sometimes the emotion does run a little bit high.”