USC Coach Shares Classy Geno Auriemma Story After UConn NCAA Tournament Win
The JuJu Watkins-less USC Trojans women's basketball team had their 2024-25 season come to an end on Monday as they were defeated by the UConn Huskies in the Elite Eight round of the NCAA Tournament by a score of 78-64.
It was always going to be a tough road for USC to beat UConn without Watkins. Even with their star player, these two teams proved to be extremely evenly matched when they faced off on December 21, 2024. USC ultimately earned a 72-70 win in that contest.
Trojans head coach Lindsay Gottlieb spoke with the media after the loss, and shared a powerful story about a message she received from Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma after that December win.
"I want to start out first by congratulating a UConn team that is really good, obviously could win a national championship. But to me, it's the way they do it. You know, nothing but respect," Gottlieb said, per an X post from SNY.
"I will just say this: On December 23rd, we were on our Christmas break... and I got a text from Geno two days after we had just beaten them and he said, 'Hey, I was just thinking about what a great win that was for you and your program, and I love your team, and hopefully we meet up in Tampa,'" she continued, seemingly holding back tears.
"I just think about the people who are secure enough to be able to see it from the other side, and take a moment two days later to say that was a big win for our program at their place, or for me, because I'm from there. And so to them, I would also say, as much as this hurts for our kids, how do you not have respect and root for a team that had to figure some things out, too, along the way, and has battled injuries?" she added.
Lindsay Gottlieb shares that Geno Auriemma texted her two days after USC beat UConn in December:
— UConn on SNY (@SNYUConn) April 1, 2025
"As much as this hurts for our kids, how do you not have respect and root for a team that had to figure some things out, too, along the way and has battled injuries?" pic.twitter.com/n4lxlZ3X0y
Auriemma has always conducted himself and his program with a lot of class, and this story from Gottlieb is yet another example of that.
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Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.
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