The March Madness tournament is swiftly moving to the Elite Eight phase with teams winning their Sweet Sixteen fixtures. Some wins were plain and dominant, while some needed buzzer beaters, living up to the ‘madness’ label. But apart from the on-court madness, there was drama off the court too, and one who opened the ‘topic’ was none other than Geno Auriemma.
While the sale of the Connecticut Sun to the Houston Rockets’ owners drew reaction from Auriemma, the Huskies coach was not happy with the NCAA’s one particular rule, too, and he came prepared to give weightage to his voice.
Geno Auriemma Blasts NCAA Tournament Format
The UConn Huskies advanced to the Elite Eight phase for the 30th time, and many saw a comprehensive win for the defending champions in the Sweet Sixteen. But for the coach ot was not a good performance as he came out with a flaw in the NCAA’s scheduling.
In the press conference, Auriemma said, “Well, I think the first question you’d have to ask is why did they go from four (sites) to two. What was the rationale? If they can explain it legitimately and then prove that it works, then great. So what was the reason?”
Geno just went all the way off ..!!!!! pic.twitter.com/zqh8TOvgeC
— linds (@finestlinds) March 28, 2026
He then read out the poor shooting percentages of players across the tournament and mentioned that the ‘double-regional’ format is the issue. “Does anybody who makes these decisions ever ask the coaches and the players, ‘Hey, does this work? Do you guys do this during the regular season? Is this normal?” Auriemma added.
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“That’s just a personal pet peeve, because we’ve gone to the Final Four no matter where the regional was, so it’s kind of — but I just don’t understand some of the decisions that are made about our game when we’re trying to grow the game,” the coach continued on his criticism.
While Syracuse Coach Felisha Legette-Jack slammed the NCAA Bracket after the third straight loss to UConn, Auriemma’s point also highlights a big gap in the workings of the NCAA scheduling. His team will face Notre Dame next in the Elite Eight, and the coach understands how difficult it would be to face the ‘in-form’ team in such situations.
Geno Auriemma Praises Opponent Superstar Hannah Hidalgo
After three fairly easy wins, facing Notre Dame in the Elite Eight format is a challenge for the Huskies. Although the 12-time champions have all the tools to deal with the defensively strong opponent, the coach finds the opponent intriguing, especially with the form of Hanna Hidalgo.
“She’s just a unique player that comes along once in a lifetime, and she has the ability to disrupt and cause chaos like nobody I’ve ever seen,” Auriemma said.
Hidalgo won ACC Player of the Week after a record-setting performance against Akron and will test herself against Azzi Fudd’s offense. Interestingly, the Huskies defeated the ‘Fighting Irish’ in the regular season matchup, but now both teams are in great shape, form, and hitting the right notes.