Disagreements and even confrontations aren’t anything new in sports.
We’ve seen it so many times.
But during this past weekend’s NCAA Tournament Women’s Final Four national semifinal game between South Carolina and UConn, we witnessed something our eyes and sensibilities weren’t ready for. Quite frankly, we didn’t like it. We were disgusted.
In the waning moments of the Gamecocks’ 62-48 dismantling of then-defending national champion UConn, we watched both head coaches, Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma, work their way down the postgame handshake line. But all that grace and good sportsmanship ended the moment these two coaches, who are at the pinnacle of the college women’s game, locked hands.
Instead of the customary post-contest smile followed by the obligatory “congratulations” and “good luck” handshake exchanges, in that moment, Auriemma went off in full tirade mode. It took Staley a second to realize what was going on and what was said before her North Philadelphia projects came rushing to the forefront.
Staley is a confident, fiery, and highly decorated figure in women’s basketball. But don’t get it twisted: The kindness and grace she usually displays can flip with the quickness. And did.
That’s what we saw Friday night, as it took players, coaches, and probably God to keep Staley from getting at Auriemma after she realized the level of insult the winningest coach in NCAA women’s basketball history had fired her way.
Auriemma claimed he was angry Staley had broken Final Four coaches’ protocol by not meeting mid-court and shaking hands before tipoff, which exists indisputable photo evidence to the contrary. Whatever the case, Auriemma’s excuse for his actions was giving “she didn’t kiss the ring” vibes.
Staley wasn’t buying it. Neither were we.
He was butt-hurt because he and the Huskies were derailed from what they thought was their destiny, which was another NCAA championship. Even in an arena where women are the dominant culture, white male coaches have this fear of being overlooked and undervalued. Imagine that.
What we saw is a white man taking it upon himself to put a Black woman in her place.
As Black people, we were understandably pissed. In full transparency, we love Dawn Staley and everything she stands for.
She is ours. She is our sister. It’s been that way since we watched the small point guard play like she was a giant at Virginia, guide the women’s national team to Olympic Gold three times, then play with all the toughness and grit in the WNBA, which included playing a career-ending stint with the Comets from 2005-2006.
But if you thought Staley was great as a player, her best act has come as a coach. She has won three NCAA Tournaments and Olympic Gold as the head coach in 2021. Along the way, she hasn’t been afraid to push back against injustices and small-mindedness while loving her players and the game the right way.
So don’t come for Staley because you might as well be coming for us. And to be totally honest, most of the white basketball community fell on the right side of this, too.
The set-in-his-ways 72-year-old Auriemma, who has been the head coach at UConn for 41 years and has cut down the nets 12 times, was way out of line for berating Staley the way he did and for stealing the storyline, which should have been about how dominant the Gamecocks were.
And just like what we are witnessing in the White House on a daily basis, we saw a man try to justify his error by doubling down on his embarrassing actions.
“I just said what I had to say,” Auriemma said.
Less than 24 hours later, with the Black community and women’s basketball community blasting him for his actions, which disrespected the game he has spent decades building up, Auriemma issued what can best be described as a partially hearted apology in which he never mentioned by name the coach he verbally assaulted and disrespected.
“There’s no excuse for how I handled the end of the game vs. South Carolina,” Auriemma said in a statement. “It’s unlike what I do and what our standard is here at Connecticut.
“I want to apologize to the staff and the team at South Carolina. It was uncalled for in how I reacted. The story should be how well South Carolina played, and I don’t want my actions to detract from that. I’ve had a great relationship with their staff, and I sincerely want to apologize to them.”
Staley, meanwhile, took the high road in the aftermath, as she was tasked with refocusing her team and preparing to meet UCLA in the national championship game.
“That’s a little disheartening,” said Staley, whose team lost to the Bruins in Sunday’s national title showdown. “At the same time, this is sports. Sometimes things like this happen. That’s why I’m just going to continue to focus on our team and their ability to advance in this tournament, hopefully win another national championship.”
Still, we are bothered by Auriemma’s actions following his loss in the national semifinal. Eventually, his tirade will be dismissed and blown off as a coach losing his cool.
It seemed deeper than that.
Like Staley, Auriemma comes from rough Philadelphia beginnings as a first-generation immigrant. And both Hall of Fame coaches have been part of growing the women’s game to heights once unimaginable.
But to hear Auriemma tell it, he and Staley don’t have much in common, so they don’t have a relationship. The real reason for the distance is insecurity.
Auriemma feels and knows Staley is coming for him and his unquestioned position in the women’s game.
Thus, the uncalled-for disturbing meltdown.
