NEWYou can now listen to PK Press Club articles!
UConn men’s basketball head coach Dan Hurley floated the idea of the team playing a game at the White House given the success of the UFC Freedom 250 event on the South Lawn.
Hurley was in Washington, D.C., and approached by TMZ, who asked if he would like to see a Huskies basketball game played on the White House lawn next.
ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON’T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!
Connecticut Huskies head coach Dan Hurley stands alongside forward Alex Karaban and guard Solo Ball before facing the Michigan Wolverines in the NCAA Tournament men’s national championship at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana on April 6, 2026. (Robert Deutsch/Imagn Images)
“That would be nice,” Hurley said. “I think UConn should definitely be in it, UConn-Duke. … Yeah, that would be pretty cool. I’m definitely depressed.”
The UFC fights coincided with President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PK Press Club
Dan Hurley, head coach of the Connecticut Huskies, talks with an official during the first half against the Michigan Wolverines in the 2026 Men’s NCAA Tournament National Championship at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, April 6, 2026. (Robert Deutsch/Imagn Images)
The approximately 4,300 people in attendance, including about 1,200 active-duty military personnel, greeted the president with loud cheers while every now and then a “Happy Birthday” was shouted from the crowd.
The event began with the Marine Band’s rendition of the national anthem, sung by Zac Brown, and concluded with a flypast by the Navy Blue Angels and the Air Force Thunderbirds.
“It was beyond anything anyone had ever seen in sports,” the president briefly remarked to reporters as he left the White House ahead of Monday’s G7 summit in France.
Head coach Dan Hurley of the UConn Huskies reacts during the second half against the Illinois Fighting Illini in the Final Four of the 2026 NCAA men’s basketball tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana on April 4, 2026. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE PK Press Club APP
Many fighters thanked Trump for having the “courage” to put on the spectacle, while the majority of winners ran to ringside to shake his hand or say a word after their respective fights. The patriotic atmosphere set the tone for other America 250 celebrations taking place in Washington, DC, later this summer.
