ESPN pundit rips UConn's Geno Auriemma over heated incident with Dawn Staley

ESPN pundit Michael Wilbon teed disconnected connected UConn women’s hoops coach Geno Auriemma connected Monday, pursuing nan coach’s outburst toward South Carolina's Dawn Staley connected Friday night.

Auriemma was seemingly disappointment pinch Staley’s deficiency of a accepted handshake earlier UConn and South Carolina played their Final Four game. South Carolina would yet triumph nan matchup, but Auriemma and Staley had a heated speech astatine the extremity of nan crippled arsenic they went up to shake hands each different erstwhile nan crippled was over.

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South Carolina caput coach Dawn Staley and UConn caput coach Geno Auriemma reason aft a women's NCAA assemblage hoops tourney semifinal crippled astatine nan Final Four successful Phoenix connected April 3, 2026. (Rick Scuteri/AP)

The UConn coach besides complained astatine halftime that Sarah Strong didn’t get a foul telephone contempt her jersey getting ripped. Strong later said she accidentally ripped her ain jersey.

Wilbon didn’t mince words successful his disapproval of Auriemma connected ESPN’s "Pardon nan Interruption."

"I’m going to return nan remainder of nan clip to woody pinch Geno, who was blameworthy of not conscionable nan handshake but nan bogus apology and nan fictional lies he had a ripped jersey, saying nan different squad behaved for illustration thugs erstwhile his ain subordinate ripped her ain jersey It’s nan disgraceful behaviour of a massively insecure bully," he said, via Awful Announcing. "It was petulant, it was classless."

"The fictional visualization of nan ripped jersey is unbelievable. The apology didn’t moreover reside nan personification he offended. We’re each taught to shingle hands astatine nan extremity of a game, nary matter what happens. Maybe earlier a game. He couldn’t moreover do that. He wandered distant and past he lied connected nationalist television, information aft information of interviews, and accused South Carolina’s players of doing thing his ain players did arsenic if we don’t each person television. And nan apology, aftermath, each of it was disgraceful."

Auriemma released a statement connected nan issue, apologizing for his ain behavior.

South Carolina caput coach Dawn Staley and UConn caput coach Geno Auriemma reason aft a women's NCAA assemblage hoops tourney semifinal crippled astatine nan Final Four successful Phoenix connected April 3, 2026. (Rick Scuteri/AP)

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"There’s nary excuse for really I handled nan extremity of nan crippled vs. South Carolina," Auriemma said successful a connection posted to societal media. "It’s dissimilar what I do and what our modular is present astatine Connecticut.

"I want to apologize to nan unit and nan squad astatine South Carolina. It was uncalled for successful really I reacted. The communicative should beryllium really good South Carolina played, and I don’t want my actions to detract from that. I’ve had a awesome narration pinch their staff, and I sincerely want to apologize to them."

Staley took nan precocious roadworthy erstwhile asked astir nan incident after nan squad lost to nan UCLA Bruins successful nan nationalist championship.

"I don’t want – this is UCLA’s day, right? Let’s support it UCLA, them winning nan nationalist championship," Staley told reporters, via The Athletic. "… We’re not going to damper UCLA’s time pinch it."

South Carolina caput coach Dawn Staley speaks during a news convention astatine nan NCAA assemblage hoops tourney Final Four successful Phoenix connected April 4, 2026. (John Locher/AP)

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Staley has yet to afloat reside nan incident and what she yelled backmost astatine Auriemma during their exchange.

Fox News’ Ryan Morik contributed to this report.

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