Legendary women's basketball coaches Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma get into heated shouting match

LeSean McCoy reacts to Angel Reese's reaction to Caitlin Clark's flagrant foul. The Indiana Fever defeated the Chicago Sky 93-58.

Friday's women's March Madness game between UConn and South Carolina saw an eruption of tempers boil over as two of the sport’s most legendary coaches engaged in a heated sideline confrontation.

UConn's Geno Auriemma and South Carolina's Dawn Staley were seen shouting aggressively at each other in the closing moments of the game. South Carolina was on the verge of a 62-48 win in the Final Four, when Auriemma approached Staley. He began to speak to her aggressively, before the conversation devolved and quickly escalated into a visible shouting match.

After the game, Auriemma appeared to not shake Staley's hand.

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UConn head coach Geno Auriemma watches a play late in the second half of a Sweet 16 game of the NCAA college basketball tournament against North Carolina in Fort Worth, Texas, on March 27, 2026. (LM Otero/AP)

Staley addressed the incident in an interview with ESPN immediately afterward.

"I have no idea, but I'm going to let you know this: I'm of integrity. I'm of integrity," Staley said. "So if I did something wrong to Geno, I had no idea what I did. I guess he thought I didn't shake his hand at the beginning of the game. I didn't know. I went down there pregame, shook everybody on his staff's hand. I don't know what we came with after the game, but hey, sometimes things get heated. We move on."

Auriemma was seen shaking Staley's hand in ESPN footage before the game.

"I don't want what happened there to dampen what we were able to accomplish today," Staley added.

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