Referee seemingly headbutted by UConn’s Dan Hurley reacts to postgame moment

No one can accuse Connecticut coach Dan Hurley of not using his head in their stunning win over Duke in the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament on Monday.

Even after the game, he used his noggin, although a bit too literally. Or so it seemed. Out of excitement, Hurley appeared to make a head-to-head contact with referee Roger Ayers after Braylon Mullins hit the game-winner for the Huskies with 0.3 seconds left.

It quickly went viral, with many blasting the 53-year-old Hurley, who is known to have an in-your-face personality.

ESPN’s Seth Greenberg, however, said Ayers did not even have an idea that it became an issue.

“That situation right there, that is absolutely nothing! I talked to Roger, and he said, ‘What are you talking about?’ He literally didn’t know what I was talking about. He said, ‘Nothing happened. The ball went in, I was running back, they were celebrating, Dan leaned in and said something to me, I said something to him, it was absolutely nothing,'” shared Greenberg, as shown in the video posted by Awful Announcing.

He added that he also talked to Hurley, who also felt that people are making a mountain out of a molehill.

“That was social media trying to create something out of nothing because of Dan Hurley’s alleged reputation,” added Greenburg, agreeing that the two-time champion coach is a “fiery guy.”

Seth Greenberg: "I talked to [Roger Ayers]… He said, 'What are you talking about?' He literally didn't know what I was talking about. He said, 'Nothing happened'… That was social media trying to create something out of nothing because of Dan Hurley's 'allegedly' reputation." pic.twitter.com/hsmp0AixR4

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 30, 2026

Greenberg, who coached Long Beach State, Florida, and Virginia Tech, described Ayers as the “best communicator” among all the referees in college basketball.

While Hurley has had run-ins with officials, his postgame moment with Ayers was a harmless one.

No. 2 UConn will face No. 3 Illinois in the Final Four.

The post Referee seemingly headbutted by UConn’s Dan Hurley reacts to postgame moment appeared first on ClutchPoints.