UConn's Dan Hurley Wins 2024 Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year Award
Scott Polacek@@ScottPolacek
Featured Columnist IVApril 7, 2024
UConn has been the most dominant men's college basketball team in the country throughout the 2023-24 season, and head coach Dan Hurley was rewarded accordingly.
Hurley was named the 2024 Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year on Sunday and defeated fellow finalists Iowa State's T.J. Otzelberger, South Carolina's Lamont Paris and Houston's Kelvin Sampson.
Naismith Awards @NaismithTrophy🚨 ATTENTION 🚨 <br><br>Dan Hurley is our 2024 <a href="https://twitter.com/wernerladderco?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@wernerladderco</a> Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year 🔥 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WernerLadderNaismith?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WernerLadderNaismith</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/UConnMBB?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UConnMBB</a> <a href="https://t.co/N58mQfYu6P">pic.twitter.com/N58mQfYu6P</a>
While UConn is one of the gold standards of the sport, Hurley did something that Jim Calhoun and every other coach in program history was unable to do by winning this award:
UConn Men's Basketball @UConnMBBCOACH OF THE YEAR. <br><br>Dan Hurley has been named the <a href="https://twitter.com/NaismithTrophy?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NaismithTrophy</a> College Basketball Coach of the Year, an honor given to the top coach in college basketball. He becomes the first coach in program history with this distinction. <a href="https://t.co/V9TAIDo9L1">pic.twitter.com/V9TAIDo9L1</a>
The Huskies were under the spotlight from the opening tip of the 2023-24 campaign as the reigning national champions and did nothing but deliver.
All they did was go 28-3 overall and 18-2 in the regular season to take home the Big East crown. Then they followed up with three straight wins to take home the conference tournament title, including a resounding 16-point victory over Marquette in the championship game.
All the pressure was on their shoulders as the No. 1 overall seed going into the NCAA tournament, but it's a surprise if they're even challenged at this point. They reached the Final Four by winning four straight games by an average of 27.8 points.
Alabama battled in the Final Four, but Hurley's squad pulled away for a 14-point win.
Next up for UConn is a national championship showdown with Purdue on Monday. If the Big East representatives can win that, it will mark back-to-back titles and the sixth national championship in program history.
This is Hurley's sixth season as the head coach of the Huskies, and he is 140-58 with the chance to add another title to his trophy case. There is no reason to think things are slowing down anytime soon, meaning this might not be the last time he takes home the Naismith Award.
Even if it was the first.