University of Connecticut women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma has issued an apology after his angry interaction with South Carolina women’s coach Dawn Staley in Friday night’s Final Four.
Toward the end of the game, but just before the buzzer sounded, Auriemma and Staley went to shake hands – only for the UConn coach to begin speaking at her in a heated manner.
The two coaches, who have developed a spirited rivalry over the years, yelled back and forth at each other before they were separated by officials and assistant coaches.
After the buzzer sounded, Auriemma walked off the floor without shaking the hands of the rest of the South Carolina team.
‘There’s no excuse for how I handled the end of the game vs. South Carolina,’ Auriemma’s statement began.
‘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.’
After the end of the game, Auriemma stated that his issue with Staley was that she did not shake his hand after lineups were introduced.
‘The protocol is, before the game, you meet at halfcourt, anybody ever see that before? The two coaches meet at halfcourt and they shake hands… they announce it on the loud speaker. I waited there for like three minutes,’ the UConn coach said.
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