Geno Auriemma did not let a Final Four victory distract him from his grievances with the NCAA's format for the 2025 women's NCAA Tournament.
As he has in the past week, the UConn women's basketball coach blasted the NCAA for travel schedule and gender discrepancy when it comes to the tournaments. Auriemma also called out the NCAA for not caring enough about the student athletes or listening to the coaches.
The Huskies earned a No. 2 seed in this year's tournament and had to travel thousands of miles to Spokane, Washington, for the Sweet 16 and Elite. Following Monday's 9:30 p.m. tipoff, UConn flew directly from Spokane to Tampa Bay for the Final Four the next morning.
In all, UConn has made two cross-country trips and has played four games in the last nine days. Meanwhile, on the men's side, a few teams will have played four games over 13 days.
"Yeah, we finished Monday night and we play Friday," Auriemma said to a media scrum following his press conference. "The guys finish Sunday and they play Saturday. But we're in this for the student-athletes. No, you're not. No, you're not. You're in it for everything but the student athletes."
Despite the excitement of returning to the national championship game after UConn dominantly beat UCLA 85-51, Auriemma continued to let his frustration out about the NCAA Tournament. He has not shied away from making comments about the format this week.
One of his biggest gripes is the fact that the men's tournament has four regional sites, while the women's have just two.
"They come on your campus all the time and ask you, 'You have any suggestions?' and then they leave, and nothing changes," Auriemma said of the organizers of the NCAA Tournament.
UConn’s Geno Auriemma ripped into the NCAA’s two regional format tonight following his team’s win against UCLA.
— No Cap Space WBB (@NoCapSpaceWBB) April 5, ...
No Cap Space’s full clip: https://t.co/RD1webNIeUpic.twitter.com/BxcpmMKjus
