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Mar 29, 2026; Washington, DC, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley talks to a referee against the Duke Blue Devils in the first half during an Elite Eight game of the East Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images
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Mar 29, 2026; Washington, DC, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley talks to a referee against the Duke Blue Devils in the first half during an Elite Eight game of the East Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images
The officiating in the National Championship game was so lopsided it drew public scorn from a U.S. Senator, but it was UConn coach Dan Hurley’s stunningly calm reaction that truly stole the headlines.
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“The refs have taken control of this game. Are fouls 11 to 4? Ridiculous. The only reason Michigan is in this game.” US Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut wrote. Yet, UConn rallied in the game, with only 6 points separating them and 2:30 to go. However, Michigan held on to win the National Championship 69-63. Despite losing out on his 3rd title in the last 5 years, Hurley chose not to criticize the referees.
Dan Hurley’s reputation with the referees is, at best, questionable. He has repeatedly been vocal about the officiating during and after games. However, his history with Final referee James Breeding stood out particularly in the lead-up to the game. UConn had lost 5 games, in 3 of which Breeding was the official. And this loss just added to that tally, and the foul tally was appalling to many, with just 13 fouls called on the Wolverines, while 22 were called on UConn. The Huskies received just 16 free throws while Michigan had 28. Yet, Hurley had no problems with the crew.
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“Kip and Jeff, and James, whom we’re familiar with as well. It’s such a physical game. Michigan is so physical.” Hurley said in the post-game press conference. “I thought the first-half foul trouble really hurt us. I thought we were positioned, if we didn’t have that foul trouble, to potentially go into halftime with a lead. You go in with a lead, and they make a run. You’re down five instead of 11. But a problem for our team has been undisciplined fouling at times.”
Coming into this game, Michigan had 19.4 fouls called on them per game. So, that was just 3 more than average, which is not a lot of deviation. On the flip side, they committed 15 fouls per game and gave up 16.7 free throws. However, as Hurley mentioned, UConn ranks among the worst teams as far as fouling and winning free throws are concerned.
Hurley’s self-blame is backed by data from Barttorvik, which shows UConn has struggled all season with a massive free-throw disparity, ranking a lowly 308th in the nation by allowing opponents a free-throw rate of 40.7% while only earning one of 29.9% themselves.
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Nov 10, 2025; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Dan Hurley watches from the sideline as they take on the Columbia Lions at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images
“It’s hard to ref that game. We both played so hard. That’s not an easy game to officiate. If I could have those three guys ref every game the rest of my career, I would sleep well at night,” Hurley said.
The game got extremely scrappy as it went on. Michigan was barely holding on at one point; both teams were bruised and running out of steam. Michigan had Yaxel Lendeborg playing through an injury, while UConn had Solo Ball. The game was intense, with both teams utilizing their size and strength. Hurley admitted that in that battle, Michigan came out on top.
Dan Hurley Admits Michigan Was “Too Tall” For Them
Dan Hurley and UConn appeared to be a formidable team. They beat the No. 1-seeded Duke and then dominated Illinois on the way to the championship game. In addition, they had a legacy with two titles in the past three years. That experience should have provided them with an edge over a team that had primarily assembled itself through the transfer portal.
So, even if Michigan had displayed its dominance over most of the teams they have faced, on the big stage, UConn was better equipped. Yet, Michigan had the lead 75% of the time, and there was little they could do. After the game, Hurley pinpointed what made the Wolverines so good, and it was their length.
“They’re just so hard to score against at the rim.” Hurley said, “I thought we had a lot of good threes that we missed, but they made it so tough on us around the rim. It was probably what got us more than the missed threes, some of those rim shots, transition baskets. I think they cut it to four; they could have put some serious game pressure on them. They changed so many shots around the rim. They’re just so tall.”
Michigan certainly has one of the best paint protectors in the country, as they allowed 48.6% of the shots around the rim, 3-5% below the division average. Their block percentage of 16.4% stands in the 99th percentile as well. With Aday Mara at 7’3″ and Yaxel Lendeborg and Morez Johnson at 6’9″, they have three very tall defenders in their starting five. UConn entered the game making 56.7% of its two-point shots, but shot only 34.3% against Michigan. They are a deserving champion.
