Coach K Unveils Massive Praise for UConn Living Legend Geno Auriemma

After UConn's incredible run to their 12th national title, former Duke legend Mike Krzyzewski believes Huskies coach Geno Auriemma deserves his flowers.

Apr 6, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; Connecticut Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma cuts off the net after the national championship of the women's 2025 NCAA tournament against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

As the dust continues to settle, it's more and more clear that the UConn women's basketball team strung together one of the most impressive championship runs in NCAA Tournament history. It was the program's first title in nearly a decade and a reminder of UConn's blue-blood status as a basketball powerhouse.

Many will point to the heroics of Huskies legend Paige Bueckers and her teammates on the court for fueling UConn's run. However, according to Duke's former legendary coach Mike Krzyzewski, UConn coach Geno Auriemma also deserves his flowers.

"His Connecticut team was magnificent," Krzyzewski said on Sirius XM's College Sports show. "They were. I texted him after they won, I said, 'You were not only good, you were dominant.' And Geno likes that because they were."

"It makes him one of the best ever to coach basketball. Not just women's basketball."

Coach K has high praise for his friend Geno Auriemma after capturing his 12th National Championship last week.@DukeMBB | @UConnWBB
🎧https://t.co/BryJ1ZnbVx pic.twitter.com/9WH51TUuux

— College Sports on SiriusXM (@SXMCollege) April 15, 2025

In their run for the program's 12th national title, the Huskies showed no remorse for their competition. UConn's average margin of victory was 30.7 points per game, which was highlighted in an 82-59 trouncing of the South Carolina Gamecocks in the championship game.

"That's their twelfth national championship," Krzyzewski mused. "But, it's been done [for] over four decades. The sustained excellence of his program is as good as anybody, ever. He's an outstanding coach. I watch what he does, and his ladies were outstanding.

"But the fact he's done it for that long, at that level, makes him one of the best ever to coach basketball. Not just coaching women's basketball."

In his 40 seasons at the helm, UConn has a 1,250–165 record and a 608-64 conference record under Auriemma. He's the winningest coach in all of college basketball and is only 172 wins short of Gregg Popovich, the NBA leader in regular season wins.

More impressively, under Auriemma, UConn has won all twelve of its national titles. The Huskies have also only missed the NCAA tournament three times, Auriemma's first three seasons running the program, proving that UConn's head coach is truly one of the all-time greats.