There were the individual stars, who, after Caitlin Clark’s departure for the WNBA, could continue to carry the game forward — JuJu Watkins, Paige Bueckers, Flau’jae Johnson — and marquee nonconference games between the top contending teams in the country sprinkled throughout the year. But in the same way that a team cements its legacy in March and April, so too does a season make its final mark on how it will be remembered in these last days of the season.
There’s no more fitting way, no better way to continue to move women’s basketball forward than to have the two biggest programs with the two most important coaches in the game on opposite benches this Sunday, vying for the national title.
Of course, it’s not Geno Auriemma and Dawn Staley on the court, though both will have their fingerprints all over this game. Because it’s Staley and Auriemma, UConn and South Carolina, the familiarity and their competitive track record have created this rivalry and also brought new eyes to the game. There will be a small margin for error.
On Sunday, Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma will coach against each other in the 2025 National Championship game.
Auriemma holds an 8-5 overall head-to-head record against Staley, including a 1-1 postseason record. pic.twitter.com/WoriA184ik
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) April 5, 2025
“It does feel like the two most prominent programs right now in women’s college basketball are playing for the right to be national champions. And we both deserve it — they deserve to be here; We deserve to be here,” Auriemma said. “Past performances, what happened last year isn’t going to be a factor on what happens Sunday. Our 11 national championships aren’t going to help us win on Sunday.”
History might not play a part in what happens on the floor for 40 minutes on Sunday, but it certainly sets the backdrop. Auriemma’s 11 national titles set the standard for what women’s college basketball could and should be. In the last few seasons, as Staley’s program has risen to the top of the sport, her teams have advanced the game. South Carolina has made it to five consecutive Final Fours — joining the company of standard-bearers like UConn, Tennessee and Stanford. The Gamecocks are in their third national title game appearance in four years. Staley is 3-0 in national championship games; Auriemma is 11-1 (his only loss coming to the Gamecocks in 2022).
Even before then, the coaches’ paths tangled. They grew up 15 miles apart in the Philadelphia area with 16 years between their childhoods. Auriemma’s first major assistant coaching job came at the University of Virginia from 1981-85, working for Debbie Ryan. In 1985, he left to take the UConn coaching job, and in 1988, Staley became Ryan’s starting point guard on a Cavaliers team that was embarking on two decades of national relevance in women’s college hoops.
In 1991, Auriemma led the Huskies to their first Final Four, where they lost to Staley, Ryan and UVA. Later, during the 2000 Olympics — Staley’s second of ...
