UConn head basketball coach Dan Hurley knows exactly what Greg McDermott is dealing with at Creighton. Coming off a win over his Big East rival, Hurley compared the Bluejays’ loss of Ryan Kalkbrenner to his previous adjustment to playing without Donovan Clingan.
After being one of the best defensive teams in the country in 2024-2025, Creighton is struggling on that end of the court in 2025-2026. Hurley attributes their shortcomings to life without Kalkbrenner, whom he called the “most impactful” defensive player in the country during his time in Omaha.
“It’s like what we went through last year,” Hurley said, via Clayton Collier of First Alert 6 news. “You lose Donovan Clingan on your defense, that next season, everything changes. We struggled mightily last year defensively, like they’re struggling this year, when you lose the most impactful player in the country on defense.”…