Dan Hurley on officiating in Michigan vs. UConn: 'That's an all-star group'

During a physical national championship game between Michigan and UConn, the two teams combined for 35 fouls – 22 for the Huskies and 13 for the Wolverines. After the game, Dan Hurley had praise for the officiating crew.

The foul difference translated to the amount of free throws the two teams took. Michigan went 25-for-28 from the charity stripe while UConn shot 12-for-16 from the foul line. Silas Demary Jr. and Solo Ball also got into early foul trouble with two each, and Demary later fouled out. The Huskies lost by six points, 69-63, as the Wolverines won their first national title since 1989.

But even with the disparity in fouls, Hurley offered high praise for the trio of Kipp Kissinger, Jeffrey Anderson and James Breeding. Both UConn and Michigan are known for their physicality, which makes it a challenge to officiate.

Dan Hurley on the officiating 👀

“It’s hard to ref that game. We both played so hard… If I could have those three guys ref every game the rest of my career, I would sleep well at night.” pic.twitter.com/6UHRdWJ0qo

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) April 7, 2026

“That’s an all-star group here,” Hurley said. “Kipp and Jeff and James, who we’re familiar with, as well. It’s such a physical game. Michigan is so physical. Again, it’s not the reason why we lost the game. Obviously, plus-13 at the free throw line, plus-12 in attempt. I just thought the first half foul trouble, really – I thought we were positioned, if we didn’t have that foul trouble, to potentially go into the halftime with the lead. You go in with the lead, and they make a run, you’re down five instead of 11.

“But we also, too, a problem for our team has been undisciplined fouling at times. But 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.”

UConn trailed by 11 at one point in the second half, but didn’t go away. The Huskies made multiple runs as they tried to get back in it. But Michigan seemed to have an answer every time.

In the final seconds, Dan Hurley challenged a call on Trey McKenney, arguing he might have thrown an elbow – resulting in a flagrant. But the officials went to the monitor and upheld the no-call, and Michigan went on to seal the win.

Alex Karaban led the way for UConn with 17 points and 11 rebounds while Tarris Reed had a double-double of his own with 13 points and 14 boards. Michigan’s defense went to work, though, holding the Huskies to 30.9% shooting and a 9-of-33 showing from three-point territory.