UConn's Dan Hurley, irritated by a fan, gets technical foul - ESPN

NEW YORK — UConn coach Dan Hurley got heated about a fan again Friday night.

Moments after St. John's counterpart Rick Pitino received a technical foul for shouting at officials in the Big East semifinals, Hurley was whistled for one during the same stoppage in play.

With his father, Hall of Fame high school coach Bob Hurley Sr., sitting in the front row right behind him, Dan Hurley called for security to eject a fan from a choice seat nearby at sold-out Madison Square Garden.

«Obviously, the place was in a frenzy when Coach got his,» Hurley said. «And then there was a guy — there was a short guy in a red blazer that was on the court yelling at the refs, and then he started yelling at me and moving in my direction. So I was just kind of pointing out to [referee James Breeding] that he was behaving worse than Coach Pitino.

»I was really just trying to help the officials. They might not have seen it. And then I got a technical for pointing out more increasingly aggressive fans. At courtside, you shouldn't end up on the court."

Hurley said the fan was cursing a lot, but the UConn coach said he later told ushers he didn't want the man thrown out.

«I kept him in. They were going to eject him from the game. I went over there to tell the ushers I wanted him to stay — not because I thought he was a good guy. I thought it might be bad luck,» Hurley said, drawing laughs. «Karma.»

The St. John's fan, Tom O'Grady, said he didn't say anything to Hurley and that all he did was tell the official Hurley was out of the coaching box, the New York Post reported.

«Yeah, that guy's a straight shooter,» Hurley said, dripping with sarcasm.

The exchange came six days after Hurley spent much of the final minute of his team's 74-60 victory at