"I'm not going to make the same mistake I did in '22" - Dan Hurley explains how UConn will recover from Big East loss going into March Madness

UConn coach Dan Hurley recently stated that his team has quickly moved on from the nine-point loss to Creighton in the Big East Tournament semifinals. The two-time national champion coach made the statement in the Huskies' media availability session right after Selection Sunday.

The 52-year-old noted the team stayed in the hotel and watched the video of Friday's game to identify the team's mistakes and determine the strategy moving forward.

"The session should be shorter but we're still making just tons of mistakes and obviously a lot of them are centered on the defensive end," Hurley said. [7:48] "But there's things offensively from creating shots for each other."

Hurley added he learned from the mistake he committed three years ago when he allowed the semifinal loss to Villanova to linger for a few days. The inaction derailed UConn's 2022 NCAA Tournament, losing in the first round to New Mexico State.

"I'm not going to make the same mistake I made in '22 where I let it linger too long," Hurley said [7:25]. "So yeah we didn't do that."

The day-long break between Saturday afternoon and Sunday afternoon augured well for the team. Hurley pointed out the players appeared to have moved on from the loss, as they were upbeat during shooting practice.

The Huskies coach indicated the need to share the ball more systematically and commit fewer mistakes as the key for UConn to go deeper in March Madness.

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Dan Hurley's UConn faces tall order in 2025 March Madness

Dan Hurley and the UConn Huskies are in for a tough March Madness as the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee placed them in the No. 8 spot in the West Regionals. The defending champion faces No. 9 Oklahoma on Friday night at the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The Sooners went 13-0 in the nonconference part of the regular season only to slump to 6-12 in the SEC rounds. They ranked No. 14 in the SEC Tournament, beating Georgia in the first round.

However, Oklahoma's bid to secure an automatic NCAA Tournament bid ended in the next round, falling to Kentucky 85-84. The Selection Committee gave the Sooners some benefit of the doubt and handed them an at-large bid on Sunday.

UConn, on the other hand, went 9-4 in the nonconference rounds and 14-6 in the Big East to gain the third seed in the conference tournament. They beat Villanova in the quarterfinal before losing to Creighton the following day.

The winner will take on the victor of the Florida-Norfolk State encounter in the second round. The No. 1 seed Gators (30-4) won the SEC Tournament by outclassing Tennessee in the final. The Spartans (24-10) secured the MEAC Tournament title by beating South Carolina State in the final.