PHOENIX — Geno Auriemma doesn’t get embarrassed often.
The winningest coach in NCAA basketball history is typically on the opposite side of that emotion. But as the clock ticked down in his team’s 62–48 Final Four loss to Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks, that unfamiliar place is where he found himself.
His response to it was a total and complete meltdown, starting with a fourth quarter rant to ESPN’s Holly Rowe, ripping Staley and how she was working the officials.
Shortly before the buzzer sounded, Auriemma took the criticism directly to Staley’s face at the centercourt line.
She responded with fire, though neither coach would elaborate on what the other said. The two exchanged unpleasantries before being separated by their respective staffs.
In the end, Auriemma left the court—his team’s perfect season in tatters—without shaking a single player or member of Staley’s staff’s hands.
During her postgame interview on the court, Staley explained briefly that Auriemma had taken issue with how she handled the pregame handshake, something the 12-time championship winning coach essentially confirmed later.
Both had little else to say about what happened between them during the game.
“You can ask Geno that question,” Staley said when asked about the heated moment.
Auriemma deflected when asked directly what he said to Staley, but he did say he had no regrets.
“Why would I?” Auriemma said. “I’ve been coaching a long time. I’ve never had a kid have to change their jersey because somebody ripped it.”
Auriemma was referring to an incident in the final seconds of the third quarter, when Sarah Strong’s jersey was ripped. But it appeared that Strong ripped it herself out of frustration after missing a shot; Strong confirmed that she ripped her jersey on “accident.”
It seemed, though, that what truly caused Auriemma to lose his cool—other than his team’s collapse—was how Staley stirred him before the game.
“For 41 years I’ve been coaching and I’ve been in 25 Final Fours,” Auriemma said at the dais Friday night. “The protocol is before the game you meet at half court…. I waited there for like three minutes.”
There are photos and videos of Staley shaking Auriemma’s hand pregame. When asked about what exactly Staley did wrong, Auriemma said, “You missed the point of what I’m talking about, so I’d rather not go into it.”
In other words, Staley got to Auriemma in a way he’s not accustomed to, leaving him at center court for a few minutes feeling foolish, and he lost his cool on the biggest stage possible.
There aren’t many who get under Auriemma’s skin in a way that evokes such a childish response. In fact, there may be just three champions capable of such a feat: Tennessee’s Pat Summitt, Notre Dame’s Muffet McGraw, and now Staley.
“We’re rivals,” Auriemma said in a gaggle after his press conference, describing his and Staley’s relationship. “That’s about it.”
Elaborating, Auriemma said the two have no relationship off the court because they “don’t have a lot in common.”
But they do. Both are hard-nosed Philadelphians, Staley from North Philly and Auriemma from Norristown, 20 miles west in the suburbs. Both are highly respected coaches. Both are inveterate winners.
And Staley was better at that Friday night.
