This year more than seemingly ever, several NCAA Tournament coaches were responsible for creating some distractions regarding their futures with their respective programs. Michigan State’s next opponent could be facing one of those situations.
We’ve seen coaches like Hubert Davis go from looking forward to a second-round battle with Illinois, but he blew a 16-point second-half lead against VCU and was fired days later and we’ve also seen Will Wade deny rumors about leaving for another job just to leave less than two weeks later. We’ve also seen Tommy Lloyd, TJ Otzelberger, and Dusty May shake off some UNC rumors.
Oh, and Kansas was dealing with retirement rumors surrounding Bill Self before they were eliminated in the second round by St. John’s. If he officially retires before the Final Four, there could be more distractions regarding the Kansas opening.
Michigan State’s current opponent, UConn, is dealing with a legitimate distraction after a prominent assistant coach just took a head coaching job at Boston College.
BREAKING: Boston College has hired UConn assistant Luke Murray as its head coach, sources told@TheFieldOf68 pic.twitter.com/14YzOptpZ0
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) March 26, 2026
Luke Murray, the son of legendary actor Bill Murray, is leaving UConn for Boston College, and that’s going to stir up plenty of distractions knowing that a well-liked coach is leaving for a new job.
While I do expect Murray to be with the team when the Spartans face UConn on Friday night, this doesn’t lessen the distraction. It actually might amplify it. Not only is his head already elsewhere, but some players could be considering following him — leaving UConn for Boston College would be a wild move, though.
Michigan State handled a distraction of its own
I’m not saying that this was meant to be a distraction or anything, but Saddi Washington interviewed for the Western Michigan job and that news went public. Players may not have known, but now they do. Fortunately, the Saddi is no longer leaving for Western and the team navigated that news cycle in the first two rounds with a couple of wins.
This doesn’t mean that Washington, or another assistant, won’t be interviewing for more jobs, but at least for now, that’s not a worry. Plus, Dwayne Stephens is with the team helping out.
Michigan State basically gained a coach ahead of this battle with UConn (Stephens) while the Huskies lost their top assistant to Boston College. This could play into the Spartans’ favor.