Hurley, Karaban forge strong link during title runs and help UConn shake off early slump this season

STORRS, Conn. — The last few pictures were taken with the basketballs honoring Dan Hurley winning his 300th career game as a college head coach and Alex Karaban scoring his 1000th career point. Without saying a word, they began to walk off the court and headed in different directions.

It might be the only time in the three years of their partnership that Hurley was eager to get some distance from his star player.

With a game to win and a chance to move one step closer to a third straight national title, neither Hurley nor Karaban were ready to bask in the glow of previous accomplishments. Their relationship has worked so well because they both focus on what is ahead of them.

In the transfer portal era when star players either bolt for the NBA after a season or two or seek out greener pastures at another program, Hurley and Karaban have chosen different paths. By staying together, they have been the key pieces at a UConn program that has gone from trying to recapture the glory days to be the unquestioned kings of college basketball.

Karaban is in his third season as a starting forward. In Hurley's four seasons without Karaban on the court, the Huskies went 73-32 with no NCAA Tournament wins. In the last three seasons, the Huskies have a 77-14 record with a pair of national championships. The 11th-ranked Huskies next play at DePaul on Jan. 1 as the Big East schedule settles in.

The Huskies are trying join the John Wooden-coached UCLA teams as the only programs with three consecutive men's NCAA Division I national titles. None of this would have happened without the Hurley-Karaban partnership.

''It is special,'' said Karaban, who leads UConn with 16.5 points per game. "We have gotten so much more comfortable with each other. He truly knows who I am. He has seen me through my best days, he has seen me through my worst days. He has been there every step of the way and has seen me evolve as a player and a person.

''He has been the most impactful person in my life. He has challenged me on the court, he has challenged me off the court. He has established new habits in my life whether it is reading or meditating. He has been super influential for me and I think it started ever since I got here. We both really care about basketball so much. That is where the relationship formed and now anytime I need someone or anytime I have a problem in my life, it is super exciting to always go to him.''

Not every player could suit up for a coach as demanding as Hurley. Karaban can get the message across to his teammates and make sure coaches and players are headed in the right direction.

''We definitely had our struggles,'' Karaban said. ''After bad games, he would be on me. Every relationship has struggles and every relationship has great moments and that is how the best ones are formed.''

Karaban's emotional mindset might be different from that of his coach but they are almost always on the same page.

''We are both pretty simple human beings,'' Hurley said. ''We both love basketball. We have our family and not a lot of other interests outside of those couple of things. I think we share that mindset and our love for the game and we see the world in a very similar way.''

Both helped the Huskies shake off a three-game losing skid earlier this season, all in Maui, and their seven-game winning streak includes wins over the likes of Baylor, Texas, Gonzaga and Xavier.

Both Hurley and Karaban had chances to leave after helping the Huskies win a second consecutive national title last spring. The NBA's Los Angeles Lakers pursued Hurley. Karaban tested the waters but opted to return to UConn.

The chance to make history was simply too good to pass up.

''That is the main reason why I did come back is to be the winningest player in college basketball history," Karaban said. "It is really to help the new guys experience what it feels like to win and at the same time, add to the history of this program (something) that hasn't been done before and hasn't been done since the UCLA days.''

Karaban is respected throughout the Big East for his play on the court and for being a winner.

''Alex has changed the lives of so many people, so many players who have had the benefit of playing with him,'' Hurley said. ''He has made them money, he has made them look really good on the court. He is an incredible, connected piece that solves so many problems and makes the people around him better. He is such an excellent player, passer, defender, communicator. He is a winner. He is tough. Obviously the coaches, he has changed all of our lives because he has turned us all into champions. The program changed when AK entered the lineup. He has taken us to another level and he is the common denominator.''

After an overtime loss to the Huskies, Xavier coach Sean Miller ended his news conference with a tribute to Karaban.

''When I was playing a long time ago, Duke was in its prime,'' Miller said. "They had Danny's brother Bobby, Christian Laettner, Grant Hill and those guys. I think UConn in its rightful place is them right now. They just won back-to-back national championships and when you think of Christian Laettner and guys like Bobby, they are iconic because they are some of the greatest winners in the sport. I don't know if college basketball has ever at this point had a better winner than Alex Karaban. Not because of his intangibles, his personality but he is a stud player.

''I know there are a lot of games to be played but I just want to acknowledge something in our conference that is true, there are very few players who have ever walked here in this great league that have impacted their program as a freshman, as a sophomore, as a junior (more) than Alex Karaban. He is a winner and he reminds you of that every time we play UConn, just a myriad of great things that he does.''

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