"Playing like our hair is on fire": Dan Hurley explains how he turned up UConn's intensity with a dual-objective 

UConn coach Dan Hurley has developed a winning formula in recent years with his program, especially with the Huskies' back-to-back national championships. In the 2024-2025 season, he is gearing his players up for a shot at a third straight national title, with a current 14-6 overall record, 6-3 in the Big East.

While things are looking up and down right now for the No. 25 squad in the nation, Hurley is sticking to what has worked best for him and his team. Known for his fast-paced, high-octane offense, the Huskies are averaging 19.2 assists per game as a whole, which is the fourth most in the NCAA, showcasing their knack for moving the ball around and keeping the offense flowing.

During a video interview with 247 Sports' Adam Finkelstein that was uploaded to YouTube on Saturday, Hurley explained how his program ties everything together, from offense and defense, while keeping their energy at the top level.

"It's all tied together, how hard we play, the intensity level that we play at, I coach at, [and] that our bench throughout a game shows up with," Hurley said. "We're a max effort program. We're a team that we want to be flying around the court, contesting everything, playing like our hair is on fire.

"That's tied into the way that I coach is directly related to the things that we're trying to do from an offensive [and] defensive standpoint, from a rebounding standpoint, from a life or death urgency to being the first to the floor, just how hard we're going to get after it," he added.

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Hurley and the Huskies have won just two of their last five games, which are conference matchups. They may need to turn their intensity levels up another notch to consistently stay in the win column, especially if they hope to make another deep run come March.

Dan Hurley explains UConn's "calling card" that has brought them success

Later on in the interview, Hurley shared the kind of high-effort style of basketball that he has built his program on. Citing the loss of key cogs as a reason why they have not done the same gameplan to its full extent, the eight-year UConn tactician detailed how they have performed it in their recent slew of success.

"If you attack the offensive glass, and it's like a siege with incredible authority and desperation, a lot of times that team is not even going to be thinking about pushing it in transition," Hurley explained. "They're under such duress just to get a defensive rebound that they almost feel like they just survived that siege and the last thing they're thinking about is blasting it at you.

"That's been our calling card, '23 and '24. We've been the amongst the best teams in offensive rebounding and transition defense. It's a philosophy about offensive rebounding, but it's also how hard we play tied to hard we coach," he added.

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Hurley and the UConn Huskies are in action on Wednesday against the DePaul Blue Demons on their home floor, looking to snag conference win No. 7.