Latest news with #Auriemma
Miami Herald
03-05-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Prominence on display as UConn faces South Carolina for national title
UConn coach Geno Auriemma called his Huskies and their national championship game opponent, South Carolina, "the two most prominent programs right now in women's college basketball." It is fitting, then, that as the 2024-25 season concludes Sunday at Tampa, Fla., the Huskies (36-3) are pursuing their 12th all-time title in the Women's NCAA Tournament, while the Gamecocks (35-3) look to become the sport's first repeat champions since 2016. UConn, the No. 2 seed in Spokane Region 4, was the most recent program to win consecutive championships in a dominating run when the Huskies won four straight from 2013-16. The 2016 title was also the program's most recent, with the nine-year wait between championships marking UConn's longest since first winning the Women's NCAA Tournament in 1995 -- all under the leadership of Auriemma. Sunday is the Huskies' first national championship game appearance since 2022, when South Carolina claimed the second of its three crowns under coach Dawn Staley. A victory Sunday would give the Gamecocks three titles in four seasons. "Past performances, what happened last year, isn't going to be a factor on what happens Sunday," Auriemma said. "Our 11 national championships aren't going to help us win." Those past performances include a matchup of these same teams less than two months ago, which UConn won handily 87-58 at South Carolina on Feb. 16. That dominating victory was similar to the Huskies' 85-51 semifinal win over UCLA on Friday. Against South Carolina, Azzi Fudd went 6 of 10 from 3-point range with 28 points, while Sarah Strong recording a 16-point, 13-rebound double-double amid a quiet offensive performance from star guard Paige Bueckers (12 points). On Friday, Bueckers was 7-of-17 shooting from the floor for 16 points after three consecutive games of at least 31 points. Fudd scored 19 points, all in the first half, to jump-start the Huskies, while Strong added 22 points and eight rebounds. The Huskies' defense forced 19 turnovers. UConn carries a 15-game winning streak into the championship game. It arrived there as the No. 1 seed in the Birmingham 2 Region. South Carolina is on a 12-game winning streak following its 74-57 semifinal rout of Texas on Friday. Te-Hina Paopao's 14 points and two steals, along with Joyce Edwards' 13 points, 11 rebounds and six assists off the bench, powered South Carolina. Staley's teams are undefeated in NCAA Tournament championship games, going 3-0 since 2017. "Saying that we're undefeated in national championship games, I wish it helped," Staley said. "... I wish it would spot us 10 points because we're undefeated." Instead, South Carolina will aim to leverage a defense that has been even more overwhelming through five NCAA Tournament games than its season-long 57.4-point per game yield. With the win on Friday, when South Carolina held Texas to 9-of-30 (30 percent) shooting in the second half, the Gamecocks have held their tournament opponents to an average of 55 points per game. Paopao described South Carolina's team defense as self-sustaining. "Energy starts from defense," she said. "When you have (Bree Hall) playing defense like that, you want to play defense for her and the team ... and get the train going." UConn's offense is putting up 87.8 points per game in the tournament, and its defense has held four of its five opponents to fewer than 60 points and given up an average of 53 points per game. --Field Level Media Field Level Media 2023 - All Rights Reserved
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
NCAA Sends Strong Message on Geno Auriemma After National Championship
When UConn closed the 2024-25 campaign at 37-2 and captured its 12th NCAA women's basketball crown with an 82-59 dismantling of South Carolina, it reaffirmed a dynasty built over four decades. On Wednesday, the NCAA March Madness X account shifted its focus from the hardwood to something more tangible: the gleaming collection of rings that symbolize Geno Auriemma's sustained supremacy. Advertisement In a brief video, Auriemma surveys a table laden with championship rings and deadpans, "How am I going to get all of these on? Sheesh, these hurt... After a while, you run out of shapes, you run out of styles. It's a good problem to have, right?" The clip is a playful yet pointed reminder that no coach in women's basketball has amassed hardware like Auriemma. Since 1985, Auriemma has won 12 national titles, 24 Final Fours, 23 conference tournament crowns, and has put together six perfect seasons. Over four decades, he has an all-time career mark of 1,250-165 (.883), has won eight Naismith Coach of the Year awards and nine AP Coach of the Year awards. Advertisement He's also helped to develop some of the game's brightest stars, including icons like Sue Bird, Maya Moore, Breanna Stewart and the WNBA 2025 No. 1 overall pick, Paige Bueckers. UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma.© Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Burying the trumpets, the NCAA instead let the rings do the talking, underscoring that the UConn standard remains the summit all programs chase. And as he grapples with the good 'problem' of too many rings, the rest of the sport is left grappling with how to catch up. Related: Former UConn Star Paige Bueckers Leaves Fans in Tears Over New Post Related: South Carolina Sends Message on Dawn Staley's Transfer Portal Addition
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Paige Bueckers and UConn dominate South Carolina, winning title No. 12 for Geno Auriemma
TAMPA, Fla. - UConn is back on top of women's basketball, winning its 12th national championship by routing defending champion South Carolina 82-59 on Sunday behind Azzi Fudd's 24 points. Sarah Strong added 24 points and 15 rebounds while Paige Bueckers had 17 points in her final game at UConn (37-3). Advertisement "Well, it's amazing to have three players, three people like that on the same team," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. "And Sarah, you would think Sarah was graduating the way she plays, right? All three of them complement each other so well. They all have such unique skill sets." Bueckers capped her stellar career with the Huskies' first championship since 2016, ending a nine-year title drought for the team. That was longest for Auriemma and his Huskies since the team won its first championship in 1995 led by Rebecca Lobo. Since then the Huskies have had dominant championship runs, including in the early 2000s led by Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi, 2009-10 with Maya Moore and finally the four straight from 2013-16 with Breanna Stewart. All were in attendance in Florida on Sunday to see the Huskies' latest title. "You just never know if you'll ever be back in this situation again," Auriemma said. "And there were so many times when I think we all questioned, 'Have we been here too long? Has it been time?' And we kept hanging in there and hanging in there and that's because these players make me want to hang in there every day." Advertisement Finally healthy, the expected No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft on April 14, Bueckers delivered for the Huskies throughout their championship season. It was the only thing missing from an incredible UConn career that was slowed by injuries. She was the first freshman to win AP Player of the Year before missing a lot of her sophomore season with a tibial plateau fracture and meniscus tear. She then tore an ACL before the next season. UConn closed the first half up 10 points and then put the game away in the third quarter behind Fudd, Strong and Bueckers. The trio combined for 23 of the team's 26 points in the quarter. UConn was up 50-39 with 3:21 left in the period before closing with a 12-3 run. Fudd, who was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four, and Strong got it started with back-to-back 3s, and the rout was on. Auriemma subbed Bueckers, Fudd and Strong out with 1:32 left in the game. Bueckers and Auriemma had a long hug on the sideline, having finally gotten that championship that he so wanted for her. Advertisement "They've all been gratifying, don't get me wrong. But this one here, because of the way it came about and what's been involved, it's been a long time since I've been that emotional when a player has walked off the court," Auriemma said. Dawn Staley's team was trying for a third title in four years and fourth overall. It would have tied her with Kim Mulkey for third most behind Auriemma and former Tennessee Hall of Fame coach Pat Summitt, who had eight. UConn had reached the title game only once during its drought since 2016. The Huskies had been eliminated by heartbreaking last-second losses in the Final Four on buzzer-beaters. The Huskies' last title game appearance came in 2022 when Staley's team beat UConn to start the Gamecocks' current run of success, a game that ended Auriemma's perfect record in title games. There seemed to be no nerves early for either team as the game got off to a fast start. The teams traded baskets for the first few minutes before the defenses started to clamp down. The Huskies led 19-14 after one quarter and then extended the advantage to 36-26 at the half. Fudd had 13 points and Strong added eight points and 11 rebounds.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Paige Bueckers becoming UConn's 6th WNBA's top pick almost prophetic for Geno Auriemma
Geno Auriemma has added yet another big number to an already gaudy résumé with Paige Bueckers the sixth of his UConn Huskies to be selected No. 1 overall in the WNBA draft. Watching Bueckers join Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Tina Charles, Maya Moore and Breanna Stewart is all the more special to Auriemma knowing everything his feisty guard battled through during her career at UConn. Advertisement Auriemma said usually careers go smoothly uninterrupted. Bueckers became the first player to earn AP Player of the Year honors in her first year. Then injuries hampered her next two years before she finally was healthy again. Auriemma said there may have been times when Bueckers questioned if that was how her career would be remembered: The games she didn't play or win, the Final Fours or national championships she didn't win. 'That's a lot, you know, when somebody's anointed you as the next great player at UConn,' Auriemma said. 'So for it to end the way it ended, it's almost prophetic.' The 23-year-old guard has faced that glare of the spotlight since her high school days in Minnesota. Now the 5-foot-11 guard heads to the WNBA on the run of success expected since her arrival in Storrs, Connecticut, in 2021 in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. She was one of the most efficient players in college basketball, playing 38 games this season and leading the Huskies to Auriemma's 12th national championship and UConn's first since 2016. Advertisement It's been a whirlwind for Bueckers since that career-capping title April 6 with a championship parade, talk show appearances and WNBA rookie orientation. The Dallas Wings made Bueckers the first overall pick in the WNBA's 29th draft just as everyone expected of the guard for years. Auriemma had some advice for Bueckers' new coach, Chris Koclanes in Dallas. 'Pretend that everything's OK,' Auriemma said. 'Be ready for her to challenge you, and you should challenge her. She's going to be a risk taker, and you're going to have to live with some of the risks because most times they actually pay off. And that at the end of the day, and just keep in mind, she wants to win as much as you do, and she'll spend more time to the gym than you do. So it's a home run for both of them.' Advertisement Auriemma and his Huskies were on hand at The Shed in New York City to watch Bueckers take her next career step. The UConn coach just turned 71 in late March. He also has 1,250 career victories — giving him a big lead over Tara VanDerveer who retired with 1,157 after the 2023-24 season. He doesn't sound ready to join VanDerveer in retirement anytime soon. Auriemma noted someone might say he should have the good sense to 'call it a day.' Yet UConn keeps drawing top talent to a place Auriemma called special to so many. 'I think I need them more than they need me,' Auriemma said
NBC Sports
15-04-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Paige Bueckers becoming UConn's 6th WNBA's top pick almost prophetic for Geno Auriemma
Geno Auriemma has added yet another big number to an already gaudy résumé with Paige Bueckers the sixth of his UConn Huskies to be selected No. 1 overall in the WNBA draft. Watching Bueckers join Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Tina Charles, Maya Moore and Breanna Stewart is all the more special to Auriemma knowing everything his feisty guard battled through during her career at UConn. Auriemma said usually careers go smoothly uninterrupted. Bueckers became the first player to earn AP Player of the Year honors in her first year. Then injuries hampered her next two years before she finally was healthy again. Auriemma said there may have been times when Bueckers questioned if that was how her career would be remembered: The games she didn't play or win, the Final Fours or national championships she didn't win. 'That's a lot, you know, when somebody's anointed you as the next great player at UConn,' Auriemma said. 'So for it to end the way it ended, it's almost prophetic.' The 23-year-old guard has faced that glare of the spotlight since her high school days in Minnesota. Now the 5-foot-11 guard heads to the WNBA on the run of success expected since her arrival in Storrs, Connecticut, in 2021 in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. She was one of the most efficient players in college basketball, playing 38 games this season and leading the Huskies to Auriemma's 12th national championship and UConn's first since 2016. It's been a whirlwind for Bueckers since that career-capping title April 6 with a championship parade, talk show appearances and WNBA rookie orientation. The Dallas Wings made Bueckers the first overall pick in the WNBA's 29th draft just as everyone expected of the guard for years. Auriemma had some advice for Bueckers' new coach, Chris Koclanes in Dallas. 'Pretend that everything's OK,' Auriemma said. 'Be ready for her to challenge you, and you should challenge her. She's going to be a risk taker, and you're going to have to live with some of the risks because most times they actually pay off. And that at the end of the day, and just keep in mind, she wants to win as much as you do, and she'll spend more time to the gym than you do. So it's a home run for both of them.' Auriemma and his Huskies were on hand at The Shed in New York City to watch Bueckers take her next career step. The UConn coach just turned 71 in late March. He also has 1,250 career victories — giving him a big lead over Tara VanDerveer who retired with 1,157 after the 2023-24 season. He doesn't sound ready to join VanDerveer in retirement anytime soon. Auriemma noted someone might say he should have the good sense to 'call it a day.' Yet UConn keeps drawing top talent to a place Auriemma called special to so many. 'I think I need them more than they need me,' Auriemma said
