In the final moments of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament semifinal game between University of Connecticut and the University of South Carolina, head coaches Geno Auriemma and Dawn Staley had to be physically separated at center court to avoid an altercation.
According to The Bulletin, the coaches met at center court for what should have been a post-game handshake, but quickly devolved into a verbal altercation. Auriemma was escorted off the court and did not shake hands with anyone from South Carolina. Staley did finish the postgame handshake line.
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During the postgame press conference, Staley declined to address the incident. You can ask Geno the question," she said. "He’s the one that initiated the conversation. I don’t know what happened there to dampen what we were able to accomplish today.”
Auriemma, however, issued a statement the next day shared by ESPN. "There's no excuse for how I handled the end of the game vs. South Carolina. It's unlike what I do and what our standard is here at Connecticut. I want to apologize to the staff and the team at South Carolina. It was uncalled for in how I reacted. The story should be how well South Carolina played, and I don't want my actions to detract from that. I've had a great relationship with their staff, and I sincerely want to apologize to them."
"That's a little disheartening," Staley said. "At the same time, this is sports. Sometimes things like this happen. That's why I'm just going to continue to focus on our team and their ability to advance in this tournament, hopefully win another national championship."
