URI Basketball’s Unraveling Season — What Would Hurley Say?

URI Basketball’s Unraveling Season — What Would Hurley Say?

After Jim Baron was fired, the University of Rhode hired Dan Hurley and it took the pugnacious Hurley five seasons to get the Rams back to the Big Dance. In his first two seasons, URI was just 22-39. Baron was a combined 27-38 his final two final seasons in Kingston. No one expects David Cox to be a miracle worker, but you do expect the team to get better.

This URI team isn't getting better.

After this past week’s loss to Southern Methodist University, Hurley in the post-game blistered his losing UConn squad.

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“Coach Dan Hurley spoke for 5:34 after the game, and his verbal stat line included five uses of 'embarrassing' in various forms, three 'dreadfuls,' both 'shameful' and 'ashamed,' plus one drop each of 'dishonored, inept, inexplicable, horrible, unacceptable, dreary, disaster' and 'humiliation," reported the Hartford Courant.

So much for Hurley sugarcoating it for the Husky millennial players.

Hurley’s words could easily be applied to the URI squad in 2018-19 — especially the '19 portion of the season

Some argue that Coach Cox deserves a break. Certainly, with the number of grads from last year’s team, most knew that this was not a Final Four team, but this team, full of returning rotation players, has gotten worse as the season has gone on.

The Rams were once 4-2 in the conference and now, URI is 5-9. Not just 1-7 in the last eight, but in the words of Hurley, “embarrassing.”

The best terms to describe the Rams this season might be “dysfunctional,” “ugly,” and now bordering on “disastrous.”

The Rams beat a good VCU team in January and got blown out by them in February 76-42.

They lost to Dayton by 29.

They have lost 5 straight games in February — by an average margin of 18 points.

The only legible bright spots have been the play of Cyril Langevine and freshman shooter Tyrese Martin.

Returning guards Fatts Russell and Jeff Dowtin look pained in every game...on every play.

Everything may not be good in Storrs, but things are getting worse in Kingston.