Sports
For more than 40 years, Geno Auriemma has been known for demanding perfection and never hesitating to point out even the smallest flaw in a win. But on this chilly April night, after his UConn Huskies dismantled No. 1 seed UCLA in a stunning 85-51 Final Four victory, the 11-time national champion found himself without the usual fire in his postgame interview.
Instead, he looked into the ESPN camera, blinked, and admitted: “I’m… incredibly… like I don’t even have words for it to be honest with you.”
Even Scott Van Pelt couldn’t help but poke fun.
“That’s a first. That’s a first for you,” he said.
Just two months ago, Auriemma was more grounded, even after his team’s 10th consecutive win over DePaul.
“It’s February this weekend, and we’re still not where we need to be. So we’ve got a lot of work to do yet,” he said on January 29. Back then, even in a 26-point win, he found the usual inconsistencies to fix.
This time, against a top-seeded UCLA squad loaded with talent like 6’7″ center Lauren Betts and dynamic guard Kiki Rice, Auriemma saw the complete opposite.
“I don’t think we made a mistake the entire evening, especially on the defensive end… it took everything we had and I’m humbled by [the Huskies’] performance tonight,” he told ESPN’s Alexa Philippou.
UConn’s all-around dominance delivers Geno the performance he’s been waiting for
Facing a team with serious Final Four firepower, the Huskies didn’t just rise to the occasion-they overwhelmed it. UCLA‘s interior advantage was supposed to be Lauren Betts.
But UConn’s unsung hero Jana El Alfy stepped up in a massive way, holding Betts to just five rebounds and one assist. El Alfy, meanwhile, pulled in eight boards-seven on the defensive glass-and added four steals.
“But Janet put the, you know, put the stamp on it right away. This is how we’re gonna play… her and Azzi pretty much just started the game, ‘This is what we’re gonna do’ and we were able to sustain it for the whole 40 minutes,” Auriemma said.
Azzi Fudd, finally healthy and confident, exploded for 19 points, hitting nearly 60 percent from the field and knocking down three of five from beyond the arc.
Freshman phenom Sarah Strong lived up to her name, scoring 22 on 9-for-13 shooting and hauling in eight rebounds. Paige Bueckers added 16 points and three steals despite an off-shooting night. Her poise and leadership steadied the Huskies in key stretches.
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