UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma could barely contain his emotions as he spoke with ESPN’s Holly Rowe after his squad captured the national championship on Sunday.
The 82-59 win over South Carolina at Amalie Arena helped the Huskies capture their first national championship since 2016 and was the culmination of UConn star Paige Bueckers’ time in college.
The UConn guard and the head coach shared an embrace after the final buzzer sounded and Auriemma had to fight back tears when Rowe asked about Bueckers.
“I love you, that’s all I could say, I love you,” Auriemma said about the moment while once again wearing his emotions on his sleeve.
“I’ve never been happier than I’ve been the last couple of months coaching a team,” Auriemma added.
The game had long been over before the final buzzer sounded to make the lopsided victory official, with Bueckers getting her championship moment before she rides off into the sunset where she is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the WNBA draft.
She finished with 17 points on 5-of-14 shooting, while pulling down six rebounds and three assists.
Azzi Fudd and Sarah Strong each scored a game-high 24 points.
“You just never know if you’re going to be back in this situation again and there was so many times when I think we all questioned, have we been here too long? Has it been time? And yet we kept hanging in there and it’s because of these players, they make me want to hang in there every day,” Auriemma said.
“This is – they’ve all been gratifying, don’t get me wrong – but this one here because of the way it came about and what’s been involved, it’s been a long time since I’ve been that emotional when a player has walked off the court.”
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