Geno Auriemma becomes thoughtful when asked why he’s still coaching UConn, at age 70. Left unsaid: He can win his 12th national championship.
Led by Paige Bueckers, UConn Huskies take 10-game win streak into March Madness.
UConn’s ‘Big Three’ present matchup problems for opponents in NCAA Tournament.
What keeps you going?
It couldn’t have been the first time someone asked Geno Auriemma this question, but my query still triggered a moment of contemplation from UConn’s legendary coach when we spoke last month.
Auriemma almost always has answers – to reporters’ questions, to roster building, to coaching situations.
This particular question, though, stumped him.
‘That’s a great question,” Auriemma told me, ‘because I can’t answer it.”
Auriemma will turn 71 years old during March Madness. He owns 11 national championship rings, three Olympic gold medals, and he’s a central figure alongside Pat Summitt on the Mount Rushmore of women’s basketball coaches. He’s college basketball’s all-time winningest coach. He’s got nothing left to prove, but he’s still proving hard to beat.
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UConn (31-3) earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, into which it brings a 10-game win streak. Auriemma is six wins shy of 1,250 for his career. It takes six victories to win the NCAA Tournament. Just saying.
‘I’ve tried to look at all the reasons why people do step away. It’s certainly past my prime, to be honest with you,” Auriemma told me in February.
“I never set out to be doing this, period, and certainly never set out to be here for 40 years. To answer that question: I don’t know. I don’t know. I enjoy what I’m doing, to a point. I enjoy the competition. I enjoy the preparation that goes into it. I don’t enjoy a lot of what’s going on right now, and I think a lot of my contemporaries have seen where it’s going and don’t want any part of it. I’m sure I’ll get there at some point – just not right now.”
Interpret Auriemma’s answer however you like, but I didn’t take it as a hint toward retirement. More as a thoughtful musing from a veteran coach who’s watched most of his contemporaries retire, while he keeps going, for whatever reason, and keeps piling victories.
UConn announced last summer a contract extension for Auriemma that runs through the 2028-29 season.
‘I would say the things that keep me going are that I still find some satisfaction in what I’m doing. That’s probably the biggest thing for me,” Auriemma said. ‘It’s not like I need to do it or have to do it. I just still find some satisfaction. It’s a challenge, though.’
The Huskies don’t run the sport like they did at the zenith of Auriemma’s dynastic run, but they retain a place among the nation’s elite.
Paige Bueckers not a solo act for No. 2 seed UConn Huskies
Auriemma steered UConn on a surprise run to the Final Four last season, as a No. 3 seed, with a squad saddled by injuries. Those Huskies finished one bucket short of a national championship game appearance.
This team, led by superstar guard Paige Bueckers, has the goods to make it back to that stage — or beyond. There are, perhaps, more complete teams, and standouts like Southern California’s JuJu Watkins, Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo and UCLA’s Lauren Betts rival Bueckers for the distinction of nation’s best player.
The Huskies enjoy an easier go of it in the Big East than No. 1 seeds UCLA, South Carolina, USC or Texas from the SEC and Big Ten. UConn won every conference game by double digits. Also mixed into its win streak was an eye-opening 29-point smashing of South Carolina. Among UConn’s three losses is a two-point defeat to USC, the No. 1 seed in UConn’s region.
The Huskies can play with anyone when they’re right. They’ve been right this past month.
When Bueckers scores and distributes, when Azzi Fudd’s 3-pointers are falling, when Sarah Strong controls the paint, they form a ‘Big Three’ that inspires belief UConn could capture its first national championship since 2016, the final year of a four-peat.
‘I believe in this team so much,” Fudd said after UConn won the Big East Tournament.
Geno Auriemma pursues 12th national title as wins keep coming
Any coach would like another piece, and if you handed Auriemma a magic wand, he’d probably conjure a veteran post player.
Two freshmen, Strong and Jana El Alfy, form UConn’s starting frontcourt. You won’t find a better freshman anywhere than Strong, who signed as the nation’s No. 1-rated recruit.
As Auriemma searched for an answer as to why he’s still coaching, I offered him this thought: A dozen national championships sure would have a nice ring to it. He chuckled in response, making no bold proclamations, nor denying the possibility of another title.
“I think you always believe that you have a chance,” Auriemma said.
Blake Toppmeyer is a columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer. Subscribe to read all of his columns.