UConn head coach Dan Hurley appears during the second half of a game Saturday, March 7, 2026, at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Marquette beat UConn 68-62. UConn coach Dan Hurley received two technical fouls and was ejected in the final seconds of Saturday’s loss at Marquette. Hours later, he was fined $25,000 by the Big East Conference for unsportsmanlike conduct.
The fourth-ranked Huskies (27-4, 17-3 Big East) lost 68-62 to the Golden Eagles (12-19, 7-13) in Milwaukee, with Hurley leaving the court after protesting what he felt was a missed foul call.
Marquette was ahead 64-62 when UConn’s Silas Demary Jr. attempted a contested jumper in the paint from defensive back Ben Gold. When no foul was called, Hurley went to referee John Gaffney and yelled that Demary had been fouled.
There was speculation that Hurley had contact with Gaffney during the game’s broadcast, contributing to his ejection. Hurley later disputed this, and the conference later said in a statement that “the conference office’s review of the officials’ game report and available game film was unable to confirm any physical contact.”
“You can screenshot anything you want to screenshot,” Hurley said. “I don’t think I’ve ever had any contact with John. I can’t believe that happened.”
The league said in a statement that Hurley “failed to leave the court in a timely manner” after being ejected.
“We hold our coaches to high standards for sportsmanlike conduct during games and inappropriate interactions with officials will not be tolerated,” Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman said in a statement Saturday night.
The Golden Eagles’ Chase Ross, who rebounded Demery’s miss and was fouled, went to the line with one second left and made four of six free throw attempts (including two technicals) in the 68-62 final.
UConn fell short of winning the Big East regular-season title against No. 18 St. John’s (25-6, 18-2) with Saturday’s loss. The Red Storm have already clinched the top seed in the conference tournament, which begins Wednesday in New York.
The second-seeded Huskies will face the winner of seventh-seeded Marquette and 10th-seeded Xavier in Thursday’s quarterfinals.
–Field level media
