As the programs shift gears in practice, the start of the season three weeks away, the men are ranked No. 3 in the AP Poll. They’ve lost four starters from last year’s team to the NBA, but Hurley was a little annoyed they weren’t ranked No.1 until someone knocks them off.
With eleven national titles under its belt, the women’s team was ranked second, just behind South Carolina, the reigning champion. Commencing his 40th season, Hall of Fame coach Geno Auriemma has Paige Bueckers, who is presently regarded as the face of women’s college basketball.
For the 15th time in 16 years, the Huskies advanced to the Final Four in April of last year. No other institution has ever shared a national championship with both programs, which they did in 2004 and 2014. As of right now, only one university’s basketball teams are listed in the top five: UConn.
College sports is ever-evolving. Conferences are realigning, players can be compensated for use of their name, image and likeness, can transfer from one school to another with little or no restriction and soon will be paid as part of a revenue sharing agreement. These changes have had major impact in basketball, but have not disrupted the winning habit at UConn, at least not yet.
“We, in this building, have built a culture that can withstand the initial blunt force of what’s happened,” Auriemma said. “Ten years from now, who knows? But when you have a strong foundation, like what exists in this (Werth Center), on both sides of this building, you can withstand a lot of things that other programs maybe cannot.
You don’t have to get caught up in some of the stuff other coaches have to deal with.” Jim Calhoun drove the men’s basketball program into the national consciousness and, in 1999, 2004 and 2011, to the top of the mountain. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005, and retired in 2012. Kevin Ollie took over and won the championship in 2014, but then came three consecutive losing seasons. Hurley, hired in 2018, revived the program and has broken new ground.
Hurley remarked, “When we first came here, the women’s team was at the top of the sport and we were where we were.” When you’re not up to par and you live in the same building and run into each other in the weight room or hallway, it makes you feel uneasy. You feel a little ashamed that you’re not as organized as they are. It’s merely another fuel log for the motivation fire.
In November 2022, Auriemma was one of the first to predict that the UConn men could win the championship that year, which they did. He remains an admirer, from his backstage vantage point, of the way Hurley runs his program.
“I saw (junior) Alex (Karaban) upstairs earlier and I asked, ‘Does this count as a day off?’” Auriemma said. “And he said, ‘No, those are rare and luxuries.’ They work exceptionally hard at what they do, they’re relentless in their approach to teaching the game and making sure every single person completely understands exactly what it is (the coaches) want.
They’re very dynamic and forceful when it comes to that. You can be that way with a certain type of player, and that’s what they’re able to do because they have the right kids.” The men’s team has several new players. Karaban, Hassan Diarra and Samson Johnson return with two championship rings, and several sophomores from last year’s team will now play more prominent roles. No team has won three in a row in men’s basketball since UCLA completed its long era of dominance in 1975, under very different rules of engagement.
Hurley remarked, “As a coach, all you’re doing is trying to create the best habits.” “We believe we’re right where we want to be at UConn heading into the season because the players have shown enough.” Hurley’s curriculum is now pursuing that historical period.
His personal brand has expanded as they have, particularly after he declined the opportunity to coach the Lakers in June despite his entertaining career. This week, in an episode of Law & Order, a fictitious figure who seemed to be modeled after Hurley—a coach who turned down a big contract after winning two straight championships—came up dead. Disclaimer: Hurley was right when she said that the coach had a full head of hair.
Celebrating their 40th year together is Auriemma and Chris Dailey, his associate head coach. In celebration of them, the UConn Dairy Bar is preparing milkshakes, sundaes, and varieties. There are now a number of men who play for UConn in the NBA and in professional leagues abroad, while there are seven women who are competing in the Olympics and at least one alumnus on every WNBA team this past season.
Breanna Stewart of the Liberty and Napheesa Collier of the Lynx, two former UConn standouts, are leading the WNBA Finals, which will see a pivotal Game 5 between New York and Minnesota on Sunday.
The UConn stamp is everywhere. The 12th championship, though, has eluded UConn women’s basketball since 2016, with several heart-wrenching defeats and devastating injuries. Auriemma, 70, has a new five-year contract, but he senses a greater urgency at the moment, because nothing lasts forever. “The thing I have talked to Paige about,” Auriemma said, “is that, when you’re young, you think you have forever. She, especially, is starting to realize that there’s a sense of urgency because (her college career) is almost over. There’s a different vibe because it’s urgent right now. We don’t have forever. This is it. This is a big year, for her and for us.”
Leave a Reply