Dan Hurley is one of the best head coaches in college basketball, and after Saturday, even his most staunch detractors might have to admit it.
For the third time in four years, the UConn Huskies are going to the national championship game after defeating the Illinois Fighting Illini in the Final Four semifinals in Indianapolis.
Even with the crowd against them and a sea of orange taking over the state of Indiana this weekend, the magical Huskies showed their pedigree, with Hurley leading the way from the sidelines.
When Illinois appeared to be making a comeback, Hurley kept his team engaged and disciplined, with hometown boy Braylon Mullins nailing the dagger three with time winding down to send UConn back to the finals on Monday.
After the game, Hurley, buzzed from another finals appearance, zoomed around the court like a firefly, high-fiving everyone in sight and playing to the crowd.
But that’s not what the fans online and the venue reacted to following the win.
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Mullins gave an interview in front of the crowd and said the atmosphere propelled the team to the finals, yet it was what happened after his final words that had social media turning their heads.
As Mullins was about to walk away, Hurley took his protege and pulled him close for a hug before nuzzling his forehead against Mullin’s to give him a headbutt.
The crowd then booed, leaving Hurley confused about whether they were annoyed by his player’s headbutt celebration, still in the adrenaline of winning such a big game.
Hurley has already gone viral once this past week for his headbutting antics, as he did a similar forehead smooch with a referee following Mullins’ iconic three-pointer to down Duke in the Elite Eight.
Headbutt touches or not, Hurley and Mullins are moving onto the national title game on Monday, where they’ll play the winner of Saturday’s showdown between the Arizona Wildcats and the Michigan Wolverines.
