UConn HC Dan Hurley details magnitude of Ryan Kalkbrenner loss for Creighton

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.”

Hurley went on to joke that he is “grateful” that Kalkbrenner will likely never play for Creighton again. Amid the controversy over ex-NBA players returning to college, the 53-year-old coach is certain the state of Nebraska would not grant someone like Kalkbrenner additional NCAA eligibility.

“Obviously, he’s playing great in the NBA, starting and doing awesome. I’m just grateful that there’s no chance he’s gonna try to come back to college. I think the judges in Nebraska — they wouldn’t f****** do that.”

Tonight was the 1st game of the Creighton-UConn series without Ryan Kalkbrenner.

Dan Hurley said he's glad to see Kalk having success in the NBA, and that there's no chance of him returning to college.

"I think the judges in Nebraska… they wouldn't f***ing do that." #GoJays pic.twitter.com/fj9V4bvEzG

— Clayton Collier (@ClaytonJCollier) February 1, 2026

Dan Hurley leads UConn to massive win over Creighton

Hurley and the Huskies dominated a Ryan Kalkbrenner-less Creighton team, blowing out the Bluejays with a dominant 85-58 victory. The win was UConn’s 17th consecutive since its loss to No. 1 Arizona in November.

UConn hit everything from the floor at will while stifling Creighton on the other end. The Huskies shot 54 percent from the floor and 52 percent from beyond the arc, while the Bluejays hit just 41 percent of their shots, including 24 percent from deep.

UConn remains comfortably in front of a lackluster Big East Conference with its 11-0 league record. St. John’s is the only team threatening them with a 9-1 conference record. The two alpha teams will meet twice in the next two weeks before the end of the regular season.

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