Huskies Report

UConn's Geno Auriemma Praises Michigan HC Before Matchup

The UConn Huskies brace for a marquee test as Geno Auriemma breaks down the Michigan Wolverines’ balanced build.
Shivani Menon|
Jun 17, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; University of Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma watches the game between the Dallas Wings and Golden State Valkyries at College Park Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
Jun 17, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; University of Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma watches the game between the Dallas Wings and Golden State Valkyries at College Park Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

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UConn Huskies

The UConn Huskies women’s team currently sits on a 4-0 over all record and next up they go up against the Michigan Wolverines. With the top-ranked Huskies rolling into their first top-10 matchup of the season and the sixth-ranked Wolverines coming in with their highest ranking in years, the match at Mohegan Sun is bound to be one for the ages.

And at the center of it all is Geno Auriemma revisiting an old coaching connection that once rewrote a chapter of UConn’s winning streak. In 2012, now Michigan coach, Kim Barnes Arico used to coach at St. John’s and the faced UConn in a home game.

That match ended with Arico breaking the Huskies’ 99-game home winning streak. Since, Auriemma hasn’t faced Arico. However, moments before the matchup, he went on to talk to the press about the Wolverines.

“It’s a different kind of roster than she had at St. John’s, you know, but I think since she’s been at Michigan, she’s had teams that were pretty balanced. They’re not weighed toward one person or two people; they’re pretty well balanced, and they do a good job playing together. They move without the ball pretty well. I see a lot of similarities between how we play and how they play,” said Auriemma.

The Wolverines enter this matchup looking every bit like the program Arico has worked on for 14 years. They have even surged to No. 6 in the AP poll and have a balanced offense that’s putting up 99.3 points per game and shooting over 55 percent from the field.

The program also has a history of punching above its weight in marquee showcases.The Wolverines will be lining up against a No.1 team for the third time since the 2024-25 season opener. While they’ve never beaten a no.1 team, they have had top-five win over Baylor the last time they played in this very event.

Additionally, the Wolverines' roster looks, as Auriemma said, "pretty balanced". Mila Holloway is averaging 14.3 points per game on 62.2 percent shooting. Meanwhile, Olivia Olson has pushed her scoring up to 17.8 points per game on 53.7 percent shooting and has hit double figures in every game.

Holloway and Olson together make quite the duo, but the roster only begins there. Brooke Quarles Daniels had 10 rebounds in her first Michigan start, and there's also Kendall Dudley, a former McDonald's All-American, playing for the Wolverines. The production is consistent across positions and roles making them a dangerous opponent.

Meanwhile, UConn is coming off its 12th championship and is undefeated this season. They are coming off a 100–68 over Ohio State. Addtiaonlly, it will also be interesting to watch Kayleigh Heckel face her school teammate Syla Swords for the third time since their collegiate journey began. Auriemma however, spoke less about numbers and was rather nostalgic talking to the press.

As Auriemma puts it, “And, you know, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen them in person, let’s put it that way. Since Kim’s been gone, I think 13 years or something like that. So yeah, I don’t think we’re the same. I don’t think they’re the same that much.”

In those 13 years, Arico has built something new. She has a 284–144 overall record with the Wolverines and sits at 129–91 Big Ten record. With UConn entering 45-1 all-time at Mohegan Sun and Michigan averaging nearly 100 points per game, it's going to be one for the ages.

What Lies Ahead for Geno Auriemma and UConn?

Once the Wolverines test the Huskies, UConn barely gets a breath before the next challenge arrives. Utah comes to Mohegan Sun on November 23. With Sarah Strong emerging as a two-way force and the Huskies rattling off 30 assists on 39 field goals against Ohio State, they enter this stretch playing some of their cleanest basketball.

Soon after Utah, the road becomes more intense. The Huskies have a Big East trip to Xavier awaiting on Nov. 30, followed by a cross-country test at South Florida on Dec. 2. Then comes a home return against DePaul on Dec. 7, a fixture UConn rarely takes lightly. The crescendo arrives Dec. 13, when the Huskies travel to USC, a team the Huskies lost to in the regular season last year before taking them down in March.

Don't forget to bookmark UConn Huskies on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage and more!

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Shivani Menon
SHIVANI MENON

Shivani Menon is a sports journalist with a background in Mass Communication and a passion for storytelling. She has written for EssentiallySports, College Sports Network, and PFSN, covering Olympic sports like track and field, gymnastics, and alpine skiing, as well as college football, basketball, March Madness, and the NBL Draft. When she's not reporting, she's either on the road chasing sunsets or getting lost in the rhythms of electronic soundscapes.

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