Recapping everything Dan Hurley said after Creighton tossed UConn out of Big East Tournament

UConn Huskies coach Dan Hurley blamed his team’s poor defence for their 71-62 loss to Creighton in the Big East tournament semifinals at Madison Square Garden on Friday. Creighton dominated the first half and led by as much as 11 points going into halftime, but Hurley’s lads just failed to stage a meaningful comeback and had to settle for the loss.

Heading into the semifinal, there was a lot of bad blood between the two teams after Hurley taunted Creighton fans when the Huskies beat them in Omaha last month. Obviously, Creighton fans would want their team to get the win so as to get their own pound of flesh.

Hurley seemed quite disappointed after the game, blaming their poor defence in the first half was a major reason for their loss.

“I mean, just that you know, you're not going anywhere with that first half defensive performance, again to allow 75% shooting in the first half and then to shoot yourself in the foot the multitude of times that we had when we cut it to three or four and had opportunities,” Hurley told journalists per Storrs Central.

Nonetheless, ahead of the NCAA Tournament, which begins in a few days, Hurley expressed confidence in his team’s ability despite the loss to Creighton.

“We'll turn the page now, you know. And I do think that this team is built potentially to play better in an NCAA tournament, just because the games are much different than these. The East games are brutally physical. So I think the NCAA tournament offers us some optimism,” he added.

How Creighton beat UConn

The Huskies' defense was off in the first half, as Creighton shot (18-of-24) 75 % to gather 46 points. Unfortunately for UConn, even with its poor defense, it failed to make up for it in offense, scoring just 35 points in the first half. That gave it an 11-point deficit to make up for in the second half.

The Bluejays started the second half well, as they jumped into a 17-point lead. But after that, the Huskies got into their groove, going on a 12-0 run in the next four minutes. That lead was then expanded to 16-2, with the score at 57-54, making it a one-possession game.

However, UConn capitulated and opened the door for Creighton to start a 9-4 run before the final three minutes. The Huskies continued to struggle offensively and failed to get more stops in the closing minutes and had to settle for the 71-62 loss.

UConn’s struggles offensively affected them as they shot 42.6% (26-61) from the floor, unlike Creighton, who shot 52.0 percent (26-50).

Next up for UConn is to await its NCAA Tournament destination and opponent, which will be announced on Selection Sunday.