Now that the UConn Huskies are back on track, coach Dan Hurley wants to make one thing loud and clear: He’s done with MTEs, not only for now but for years to come as well.
UConn endured a tough trip to Maui last week, sustaining three shocking defeats in the Maui Invitational Tournament. Following his program’s 99-45 route of Maryland Eastern Shore, the renowned coach revealed his team wouldn’t play in multi-team events anymore:
“I’m not doing another 3-game MTE again,” Hurley said. “Moving forward, we will only play home-and-homes or single-game events — I don’t think I’ll ever do a 3-game MTE again. There’s zero chance I ever do that again.”
Dan Hurley explains the decision not to play MTEs again
According to multiple reports, coach Hurley, who calls all the shots for the basketball program, was already considering this move even before his team’s winless run in Maui:
Dan Hurley head coach of the UConn Huskies
“With the non-conference, rather than a third party, when you’re in a revenue-sharing situation like we’re heading into now, you’ve got to maximize the non-conference slate,” Hurley said. “We still want to play neutral-site games, particularly like MSG and places that make sense. But, we’ve got to play a schedule that’s going to have more home-and-homes on it than anything else right now.”
When asked about this bold statement, UConn Director of Athletics David Benedict had his coach’s side, stating that they also needed to take financials into consideration:
“What does it cost us to travel to events?,” Benedict asked. “How much revenue do we derive? What are we giving up by not playing a home game? Those are all things that we’re factoring into that equation. And so, we’re working with lots of different promoters and media companies right now to evaluate creating the best path forward, so we manage the schedule the way that Coach Hurley wants, but is also the best for us financially.”
This is a disappointing turn of events for the fans, and this decision will be met with some skepticism. Even so, this is a new era in college basketball, and as such, everybody will have to adapt.
