BUFFALO

When Jarryn Skeete first met his new basketball coach at the University at Buffalo a couple of years ago, he admits he was confused.

“Honestly,” the 21-year-old Brampton-born guard said, “I knew his name and I really thought it was his dad.”

It took one quick Google search for Skeete to realize why the hiring of this Bobby Hurley — the son of Basketball Hall of Fame high school coach Bob Hurley Sr. — created such a buzz in a town where UB basketball often was an afterthought.

“When he walked in the room, I was like ‘I thought he was older,’ ” Skeete said.

“And then after he talked, I looked him up and I was like ‘I don’t want to be anywhere else but here. I want to play for him.’ ”

It was plenty stunning when one of the most famous players in college hoops history was named head coach of a program with a grand total of zero appearances at the NCAA tournament (Buffalo joined Division I in 1991) after the 2012-13 season.

Now, the story has taken on a whole new level of hype since the ex-Duke star point guard has guided the UB Bulls to March Madness in just his second year as a head coach.

Of course, many players on this inaugural Mid-American Conference champion Bulls squad — including Skeete and fellow Canadian Rodell Wigginton of Dartmouth, N.S., — weren’t even alive when the gritty Jersey City product teamed with Buffalo’s own Christian Laettner and future NBA star Grant Hill to lead legendary coach Mike Krzyzewski’s Blue Devils to their first two NCAA crowns in 1991 and 1992 — the latter over Michigan’s Fab Five.

“It’s crazy,” said Skeete, a starting, third-year guard.

“No matter how old or outdated that Duke team or that NCAA tournament run has been, no matter where we go, there are always Duke fans waiting for the bus. He’s actually got more fans than we do, more followers on Twitter, he’s a lot more known than we are, which is really fun. Because if your coach can be that known, win that much and still be humble, you know he’s a great guy.”

Since capturing the MAC title with a win over Central Michigan on Saturday in Cleveland, it has been a true whirlwind for the Bulls.

There was a gathering with hundreds at a local restaurant for the selection show, where the Bulls grabbed a No. 12 seed and a meeting with No. 5 West Virginia in the first round (officially, the second round) on Friday in Columbus.

Quickly, several CBS analysts made Buffalo a popular pick for an upset.

Meanwhile, Hurley has made the media rounds — including a hit on The Jim Rome Show on Tuesday.

“My schedule’s been a lot different over the past two days than the rest of the year,” Hurley said.

“I’m literally timed out. I just managed to get my three-mile run in this morning on the treadmill because the rest of day is completely structured. It’s different, but I’ll take it. It’s a good problem to have.”

It’s uncharted territory for a school that hasn’t even been at the top of western New York’s Big 4 most years — St. Bonaventure, Canisius and Niagara all have gone to the Big Dance.

“It was always one of those programs you shook your head at it and wondered why can’t they do better,” said TSN analyst Jack Armstrong, a former head coach at Niagara.

Hurley, Armstrong feels, has been an excellent fit.

“You think about Duke and blue blood, Bobby Hurley is the furthest thing from that,” Hurley said. “He’s worked his tail off.”

It’s hard to imagine the Bulls getting this kind of attention — in a town infatuated with Rex Ryan’s Bills makeover and the Sabres’ drive to lose and land Connor McDavid — without the school’s decision to make a splash by hiring the NCAA’s career assists leader.

The hiring, while generating headlines, was met with some skepticism because Hurley had no head-coaching experience.

After ending a disappointing NBA career (interrupted by a near-tragic car accident) following a brief stint with the Vancouver Grizzlies in 1998, Hurley focused his attention on thoroughbred-racing ownership.

Eventually, he returned to his first love, working under brother Dan on Wagner College’s coaching staff in 2010 before following him to Rhode Island.

As a player, the 6-foot, 165-pound Hurley made up for his lack of size with a fierce drive, something he maintains as a coach.

“There’s nothing like this tournament,” Hurley said.

“I’m just excited for my team to have an opportunity to play in it.”