Danny Hurley describes himself as a “monster.” Stanford Robinson calls his coach “crazy.” Andre Berry says he “explodes” during film sessions.
Watch the animated New Jersey native and Rhode Island basketball coach stalk the sidelines, rarely sitting at all during a game, celebrating big baskets like a teenager, and those descriptions seem fitting. But there is obviously a method to his madness. His players will run through a wall for him, and the Rams have emerged as one of the premier mid-major teams in the country.
“We had a bus driver who didn’t want to be around us anymore, because he thought Coach Hurley was treating us bad, because of all the cursing he was hearing, all the name-calling,” said Robinson, a senior guard. “But we’re so close to Coach Hurley, it doesn’t affect us in a negative way. If anything, it gets us better, and makes us push more.”
It is hard to quibble about the results. After inheriting a program that was coming off consecutive single-digit-win seasons five years ago, Hurley has the 24th-ranked Rams in position to head back to their second straight NCAA Tournament after an 18-year absence.
They are 17-3, and their 12-game winning streak is the school’s longest in 76 years. The 9-0 start in the Atlantic 10 is a program record. They are 2-0 against the Big East, knocking off Seton Hall and local rival Providence. And all this has happened after losing the team’s two best forwards, Kuran Iverson and Hassan Martin, from a year ago, and dealing with early-season injuries to key players E.C. Matthews
and Cyril Langevine.
“Everybody’s taking notice now, that last year wasn’t a fluke,” Berry said.
To prepare for this season without Martin and Iverson, Hurley and his coaching staff watched extensive footage of Villanova, and how it has defended with four guards, the toughness and determination needed when giving up so much size. Rhode Island adopted some of the Wildcats’ philosophies, like switches at the non-center spot, and their ball-screen defense. Most of all, they tried to emulate how well they communicate and talk on defense, how together they are. So far, allowing just 66.3 points per game, it has worked.
“They remind me of the Villanova teams in 2005 and 2006, when Kyle Lowry played power forward,” CBS Sports analyst Jon Rothstein said. “[They have] the deepest backcourt in the college basketball, and I don’t think it’s close. A lot of teams have two, three, four players capable of taking over a game on the perimeter, and Rhode Island has six, and all six of those guys have scored at least 18 points in a game.”
In the preseason, whenever Hurley — the son of legendary high school coach Bob Hurley Sr. and brother of Arizona State coach Bob Hurley — felt his players were getting complacent, he told them they barely reached the NCAA Tournament a year ago. After defeated Dayton for their 10th straight victory, he hardly let them celebrate the accomplishment. Back in the locker room, Hurley reminded everyone about the last time they played Fordham, their next opponent, which beat them a year ago.
“He finds the little things and blows it up, and makes it a big deal,” Robinson said. “It gets on your nerves, but it gets on your nerves so much, you’re like I want to shut this man up.”
Hurley doesn’t just demand all-out effort. He gives it, too. Along with his assistants, he will take part in every practice in an active role, like he’s one of the players. The daily joke around the team is he needs a gas mask to keep up. The workouts are extreme, physical and high energy, played with pace and at an up-tempo speed. They don’t rate drills by baskets scored, but by stops.
“He wants game day intensity in every practice,” athletic director Thorr Bjorn said.
The logical question, of course, is why is this intense, sometimes over-the-top coach able to get so much out of players? Hurley attributed it to the bond they develop, starting with recruiting. He has players over his home frequently. They will hang out off the court and go bowling. He brings in a non-denominational pastor. Robinson credits Hurley with sticking by him when he was arrested for disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and simple assault, charges that were later dropped.
“That’s why nobody transfers, and that’s why they allow me to keep them on the edge,” Hurley said. “They know it’s coming from love.”
As Rhode Island has become a mid-major power, Hurley’s stock has risen. Rutgers twice came after him. He was reportedly in the mix for the Georgetown job that went to Patrick Ewing. Some believe UConn could be a landing spot. After a recent win over Dayton, freshman Fatts Russell asked Hurley about it, after hearing from fans during the game his coach would be leaving.
Hurley reassured Russell: At the moment, he doesn’t think much about the rumors.
“I don’t have any thought on it, because I love where I’m at, with what we have coming in, and what we’re doing recruiting,” said Hurley, who is under contract through the 2023-24 season. “We’re in a position to be able to sustain this.”
Of course, that could always change, depending on what jobs open up. A source close to the Hurley family said he’s in no hurry to go elsewhere, and he will be picky. In his next job, he wants a place he can compete for Final Fours and annually land four- and five-star recruits, the source said.
For now, Hurley is thrilled with where he’s at, breaking through last year and taking an even bigger step this year, with a top-30 recruiting class on the way.
“It’s happening for us right now,” he said. “That’s why I came here.”