Geno Auriemma - Two-host regional system 'ruined the game' - ESPN

SPOKANE, Wash. — UConn coach Geno Auriemma reiterated his disdain for the two-host regional system for the women's NCAA tournament, saying Friday that «whoever came up with this super regional stuff — and I know who they are — ruined the game.»

«Half the country has no chance to get to a game in person. But you're making billions off of TV. Well, actually you're not; that would be the men's tournament,» Auriemma said a day before his No. 2 seed Huskies face No. 3 seed Oklahoma in Spokane. «So yeah, there's a lot of issues that they need to fix. And again, we could get our ass beat tomorrow and that won't change my feelings.»

The NCAA moved to two regional sites for the women's tournament in 2023, after previously hosting games at four locations. The women's March Madness event will have two regional sites through 2028: Fort Worth, Texas, and Sacramento, California, next year; Philadelphia and Las Vegas in 2027; and Portland, Oregon, and Washington, D.C., in 2028.

Auriemma's Huskies have had to come out to the West Coast each year since 2023 for the regionals. They were a No. 2 seed in Seattle that year, falling to Ohio State in the Sweet 16, and were a No. 3 seed in Portland last season, when they beat USC to advance to the Final Four.

«In a normal world, run by normal people, there would only be four teams here,» Auriemma said, revealing that because there are eight teams at the Spokane super regional, his squad had to get up at 6 a.m. for a one-hour 8 a.m. practice window, and Saturday the team has to wake up at 5 a.m. for a half-hour 7:30 a.m. shootaround.

The Spokane 1 regional games will be held Friday and Sunday, while Spokane 4 contests will take place Saturday and Monday, making for four straight days of games at