South Carolina’s stunning upset win over UConn in the Final Four on Friday night was overshadowed by a bizarre incident between Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley and Huskies coach Geno Auriemma — two of the all-time greats — just before the final buzzer.
The Gamecocks were up by 14 and running out the clock. Before UConn inbounded the ball to officially end the game, however, Auriemma started walking toward the South Carolina bench. As he passed by Staley, tempers suddenly flared.
Both parties had to be held back by their respective coaching staffs and the officials, and the game was slightly delayed. When the game finally did end, Auriemma walked off without acknowledging anyone on the South Carolina side.
ESPN reporter Kareem Copleland captured a courtside video in which Dawn Staley appears to say “I will beat Geno’s ass” after the two were separated.
Staley, in a postgame interview with ESPN, said she thought maybe Auriemma was upset about a lack of pregame handshake between the two coaches. The two did shake hands at some point pregame, but Auriemma waited for another handshake right before tip-off and never got one.
“I have no idea. But I’m gonna let you know this: I’m of integrity. I’m of integrity,” Staley said. “So if I did something wrong to Geno — I don’t know what I did. I guess he thought I didn’t shake his hand at the beginning of the game. I didn’t know. I went down there pregame, shook everybody on his staff’s hand. I don’t know what he came with after the game. Sometimes, things get heated. We move on.”
Added Auriemma: “For 41 years I’ve been coaching and, I don’t know, 25 Final Fours,” he said. “The protocol is before the game, you meet at halfcourt. Anybody see that before? Two coaches meet at halfcourt and they shake hands, correct? Ever see it? They announce it on the loudspeaker. I waited there for like three minutes. So it is what it is.”
When asked about the fact that the two did shake hands, Auriemma dismissed the question.
“No, I think you missed the point of what I’m talking about, so… I’d rather not go into it,” Auriemma said. “Anybody that’s been in the NCAA tournament, you know what I’m talking about.”
Staley didn’t want to take away from her team’s accomplishment after the game.
“You can ask Geno the question. He’s the one that initiated the conversation,” Staley said during her press conference. “I don’t want what happened there to dampen what we were able to accomplish today.”
Auriemma’s frustration started well before his confrontation with Staley. During his interview with Holly Rowe between the third and fourth quarters, Auriemma ranted about the refs and called out Staley’s behavior on the sideline.
After the game, Auriemma kept up his complaints.
“There were six fouls called that quarter – all of them against us. And they’ve been beating the shit out of our guys down there the entire game. And I’m not making excuses because we haven’t been able to make a shot, but this is ridiculous,” Auriemma said. “Their coach [Staley] rants and raves on the sideline and calls the referees some names you don’t want to hear. And now we get six to zero and I’ve a kid with a ripped jersey, and they go, ‘I didn’t see it.’ C’mon man. This is for the national championship.”
Auriemma closed his press conference by circling back to his thoughts about the officiating and Staley’s sideline conduct.
“I just want to make sure there’s not a double standard,” Auriemma said. “I’m of the opinion that if I ever talk to an official like that, I would get tossed. So I just want to make sure there’s not a double standard, that some people are allowed to talk to officials like that and other people are not. That’s it. So yeah, I was pretty frustrated.”
UConn’s stunning loss ended the Huskies’ perfect season, their 54-game winning streak (which was tied for the fourth-longest all time) and their quest for back-to-back championships. No team has won back-to-back titles since UConn won four in a row from 2013-16.
South Carolina will play UCLA in the national championship on Sunday. This is the Gamecocks’ third consecutive appearance in the national championship game, and they are seeking their fourth title under Staley.
