While Friday saw Dawn Staley's South Carolina get a statement win over Geno Auriemma's UConn Huskies in the Final Four, the aftermath of the game also became a major talking point for all the wrong reasons.

The legendary coaches were seen shouting aggressively at each other in the closing moments of the game. Auriemma approached Staley and began to speak to her aggressively, before the conversation quickly escalated into a visible shouting match. As a result, the coaches didn't shake hands at the end of the match.

After the game, Staley spoke to ESPN and revealed what might have triggered Auriemma. She said, "I have no idea, but I'm going to let you know this, I'm of integrity. So if I did something wrong to Geno, I had no idea 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."

However, just like a mature individual, Staley ended the interview with, "I don't know what we came with after the game. But hey, sometimes things get heated. We move on."

Meanwhile, Auriemma was all over the place as he constantly blamed either Staley or his team for getting favourable referee calls or for the infamous Sarah Strong's jersey tear.

"Their coach rants and raves on the sideline and calls the referee some names you don’t want to hear. And now we get 6 to 0, and I got a kid with a ripped jersey, and they go, ‘I didn’t see it.’ Come on, man. It’s for a national championship." Auriemma told ESPN.

Despite all the allegations, what the world saw was Auriemma getting outcoached by the Gamecocks HC. And the All-American duo of Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd's disappointing night did not make matters any better.

The Naismith Player of the Year scored only 12 points in 40 minutes with an unusual 4-16 field goal ratio from her standards. Fudd's last-ever game donning the Huskies jersey saw her score only eight points.

This is the third year in a row that South Carolina has made it to the title game. Staley is the fourth coach to lead her team to three consecutive championship games.

Stephen A. Smith Blasts Geno Auriemma's Classless Altercation with Dawn Staley

The heated exchange between Auriemma and Staley sparked instant reactions online. Reacting to the incident, ESPN talk show host and personality Stephen A. Smith blasted Geno.

On March 3, Smith shared an X update that read, “That was some straight B.*. from the GREAT Geno Auriemma. Never — ever — thought I’d see the day when the greatest women’s college coach in history would go down so CLASSLESSLY!!!"

It also mentioned, "Horrible look, and should be called out for it. He got OUTCOACHED. Plain and simple. And gets in her face like she did something wrong to him instead of being gracious. Had Dawn Staley acted like that we would be all over her. #HorribleGENO!”

Well, it's pertinent to note that Smith's criticism of Auriemma comes just a year after he praised the UConn HC, labeling him the greatest coach in women's college basketball history.

So, now that you have learned about the entire incident, why do you think Auriemma broke character in such a way?

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Written by

Joy Bassy

Edited by

Souvik Roy