South Carolina and Dawn Staley exacted sweet revenge in Phoenix on Friday night.
Connecticut had won 54 straight games, dating back to a four-point loss to Tennessee in February 2025. The Gamecocks ended the historic streak in the national semifinals Friday, outclassing the Huskies from start to finish in a 62–48 win.
But a pair of exchanges between South Carolina coach Dawn Staley and UConn coach Geno Auriemma was the dominant story after the game.
Auriemma was furious about the officiating in an ESPN interview after the third quarter, saying “They’ve been beating the shit out of our guys down there.” He also complained about how Staley was working the officials. Asked about that after the game, Staley said “I think that’s a Geno question.”
Auriemma and Staley barked at each other in the game’s waning moments, and Auriemma and Staley exchanged heated words again after the game.
“I’m of integrity. If I did something wrong to Geno, I have no idea what I did,” Staley told ESPN after the buzzer. “I guess he thought I didn’t shake his hand at the beginning of the game … I don’t know what he came with after the game. Sometimes things get heated—we move on.”
At her postgame press conference, Staley deflected, saying “You can ask Geno … He’s the one that initiated.”
Auriemma had little to say to media Friday night.
“I said what I had to say,” he told reporters about the incident. “Nothing. Nothing.”
“I don’t have any regrets,” Auriemma said of his ESPN interview in response to a question from Front Office Sports.
“I’ve been coaching a long time and I’ve never had a player have to change their jersey because someone ripped it,” he said, referring to Sarah Strong having her jersey ripped. Strong called it an “accident” in a tearful postgame interview.
Auriemma also claimed that Staley made him wait for “like three minutes” for a pregame handshake, although the pair did eventually shake hands before tipoff.
Connecticut blew out South Carolina in the title game last year for its first title in nine years. Now, despite the entire Final Four from last year returning, there will not be a repeat champion.
Bruins Break Through
In the nightcap, UCLA beat Texas 51–44 to make its first NCAA title game. (The Bruins won an AIAW title in 1978 before the NCAA started putting on a women’s tournament in the 1980s.) UCLA briefly pulled away in the fourth quarter before a furious Texas comeback in the final minutes fell short.
Staley’s South Carolina team will be heavily favored on Sunday afternoon—this will be the Gamecocks’ fourth title game appearance in the last five years. But UCLA has lost just once all year, to Texas in November, and the Bruins held off the Longhorns in the rematch Friday night.
