Speaking after the 98-45 loss to UConn, Syracuse Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack expressed her frustration over her team being repeatedly placed in UConn's regional pod.

Arguing that her team deserved better, Legette-Jack espoused that they had earned the right to play outside a four-hour radius.

"After being in this business for 37 years, and to have to come and be in this particular bracket every fricking year is unacceptable," Felisha Legette-Jack said. "What we've done and our body of work, to have to come and play the best team in the country, I mean, Geno [Auriemma] has this thing going, and I love what he's done. But we, I thought, deserved a little more respect.”

She continued, "A lot of people talking about rev share; I just want the young people that's in my locker room to have a fighting chance. And I am grateful to be in an NCAA tournament, from where we've come from, but I think that we've earned the right to go anywhere outside of a four-hour radius."

Out of 7 appearances, Syracuse had to face the Huskies 5 times, and 3 of them were in UConn’s home court.

But Felisha Legette-Jack's problem with the NCAA tournament bracket didn't begin when she started coaching Syracuse; it is something that has bothered her since her tenure at Buffalo.

Felisha Legette-Jack Faced Similar Issues at Buffalo

During her time at Buffalo, Legette-Jack led the Bulls to four NCAA Tournament appearances. In 2019, as a No. 10 seed, Buffalo was placed in UConn’s subregional and had to travel to Storrs for the second round, where they lost 84–72 to the Huskies.

This matchup exemplified the same issue she now criticizes: mid-major programs from the Northeast being funneled into UConn’s regional due to geographic proximity, despite the overwhelming disadvantage of playing on UConn’s home court.

She has now faced UConn in three of her last five NCAA Tournament appearances—twice with Syracuse (2024, 2026) and once with Buffalo (2019)—and views the repeated placement as systemic and unfair.

Felisha Legette-Jack's comments stem from her belief that the NCAA’s bracketing practices disproportionately penalize programs like hers, both in Buffalo and Syracuse, simply due to location.

What do you think of Felisha Legette-Jack's claims? Let us know!

Written by

Deblina Roy

Edited by

Arvind Rao