Dan Hurley shouts at UConn players for being "soft as hell defensively" during Creighton loss

On Saturday at Gampel Pavilion, Dan Hurley's UConn suffered a tough loss, falling 68-63 to Creighton. Despite a promising start, the Huskies found themselves trailing 35-28 at halftime. UConn jumped out to an early lead, going up by eight points, but the Bluejays responded with a strong 10-2 run to end the first half with a lead.

The head coach didn’t mince his words when he addressed his players during a timeout. FOX College Basketball posted a video on their Instagram where Dan Hurley was visibly frustrated with the team’s defensive performance. He expressed in anger:

"Our offensive success early made us soft. Our offensive success early made us soft as hell down there defensively, and digging balls out, and individual defense. We let Neal get going!"

The loss to Creighton snapped UConn’s 28-game home winning streak, which dated back to the 82-79 defeat to Xavier on January 25, 2023.

Despite playing in front of a packed home crowd, UConn couldn’t hold off the Bluejays’ attack, led by Jamiya Neal, who had a career-high 24 points. Neal’s performance proved pivotal in Creighton’s success, as he shot an outstanding 7-of-8 from the field.

Key performances as Dan Hurley's UConn fall to defeat vs. Creighton

Dan Hurley during Creighton at Connecticut - Source: Imagn

The Huskies found it hard to contain Creighton’s offense as they allowed Neal to find his rhythm early. Dan Hurley’s frustrations with his team’s defense were evident throughout the game. As he mentioned, the Huskies’ early offensive success seemed to make them complacent on defense, which allowed Creighton to exploit fast-break opportunities.

On the offensive end, Solo Ball and Hassan Diarra led UConn with eight points each in the first half. Diarra was efficient, shooting 4-of-6 from the floor and contributing three rebounds and three assists.

Ball, meanwhile, was perfect from the field, shooting 3-for-3 and also hitting both of his three-point attempts. However, despite their strong individual performances, the Huskies were unable to gain an advantage.

On the other hand, Creighton shot 43% from the floor and 40% from deep, against UConn’s 48% shooting from the field and 33% from three-point range. Creighton’s offensive performance was well-rounded, with Ryan Kalkbrenner adding 16 points and Steven Ashworth contributing 12. While Kalkbrenner was a focus of UConn’s defensive game plan, it was Neal who stepped up by leading all scorers with his stellar shooting display.

UConn had its moments in the first half, briefly regaining the lead after a pair of free throws from Samson Johnson with about three and a half minutes remaining. However, Creighton quickly responded with Kalkbrenner’s three-point play and a missed layup from Diarra, which allowed the Bluejays to seize the lead just before halftime.

The second half was a back-and-forth affair, with UConn managing to retake the lead early on thanks to a 12-2 run, highlighted by four consecutive points from Alex Karaban. This run put the Huskies up 43-41, but Creighton quickly answered with two back-to-back dunks in a 6-0 spurt, regaining the lead and never looking back.

One of the key turning points in the game came when Creighton hit four consecutive three-pointers after initially missing their first three attempts. Isaac Traudt’s timely three-pointer gave the Bluejays their first lead of the game midway through the first half, and they would hold onto it for the remainder of the contest.

The Huskies managed to regain the lead twice during the first half, but Creighton closed out the final minutes with 10 of the last 12 points to carry a seven-point lead into the locker room.

Creighton’s free-throw shooting was another area in which the Bluejays gained an advantage. They outscored UConn 14-5 from the foul line, with several key free throws down the stretch to help seal the win. This discrepancy at the charity stripe, coupled with timely shooting, allowed Creighton to manage their lead in the final minutes.

Meanwhile, the loss to Creighton also came at a time when UConn’s star freshman, Liam McNeeley, is still recovering from a high-ankle sprain. Dan Hurley's Huskies now look to bounce back as they continue their Big East campaign.