Basketball <\/p>\n
This year\u2019s UConn men\u2019s basketball team looks strikingly different from the last.<\/p>\n
Under coach Dan Hurley, who memorably turned down the Los Angeles Lakers head coaching job<\/a> last fall to stay in Storrs, the Huskies have endured an anxiety-ridden rollercoaster of a 2024-25 season that has them teetering on the NCAA tournament bubble.\u00a0<\/p>\n UConn suffered through some early season woes, which included an embarrassing last-place finish at the 2024 Maui Invitational<\/a> and an uninspiring stretch of games in the wake of star freshman Liam McNeeley\u2019s ankle injury. <\/p>\n In February, the reigning back-to-back NCAA champs hardly look dominant or consistent enough to vie for the historic three-peat this year and have had to fight for most of their victories\u2014they\u2019ve played 15 Big East games so far, and all but two games have been decided by eight points or less.<\/p>\n Amid UConn\u2019s agonizing up-and-down struggles, Hurley seemed to call out his own players in a guest appearance on Mad Dog Sports Radio<\/em> this week.\u00a0<\/p>\n The ordinarily impassioned coach <\/a>was as fiery as ever when talking about his team\u2019s coachability, appearing to suggest that this year\u2019s squad couldn\u2019t take \u201chard coaching\u201d as much as his previous squads could.<\/p>\n \u201cI realized that I couldn\u2019t coach this team as hard as I’ve coached some of my other teams,\u201d Hurley said. \u201cWhen you have guys like Cam Spencer, Andre Jackson, Donovan Clingan, these guys could take hard coaching. This year, our confidence got rattled so early in Maui, you know, I’ve had to build this team up. I don\u2019t think any of us were prepared for the level of scrutiny throughout the year that\u2019s come with the success we\u2019ve had the last two years. I think that\u2019s been heavy for all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n Dan Hurley doesn’t mince words:<\/p>\n “I can’t coach this team as hard as I’ve coached other teams. Cam Spencer, Andre Jackson, Donovan Clingan… they could take hard coaching. This year, our confidence got rattled in Maui, and I’ve had to build this team up”pic.twitter.com\/OwwwYazkjS<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n