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Dawn Staley addresses Geno Auriemma spat: 'It has very little to with the handshake'

The Gamecocks head coach is finally speaking on what happened.
ByMorgan Moriarty
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Apr 3, 2026; Phoenix, AZ, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma and South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley argue at the end of a semifinal of the Final Four of the women's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
Apr 3, 2026; Phoenix, AZ, USA; UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma and South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley argue at the end of a semifinal of the Final Four of the women's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Mortgage Matchup Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The South Carolina Gamecock women's basketball program is preparing to open the 2026-27 season, set to face Maryland in Paris on Nov. 2. The expectations surrounding the Gamecocks this season are high, as head coach Dawn Staley enters her 17th season in Columbia. 

One of the biggest storylines surrounding Staley last season was her postgame incident with UConn head coach Geno Auriemma. In the Final Four, Staley's Gamecocks knocked off the Huskies 62-48, which snapped Coach Auriemma's 54-game win streak. 

After the game, the two legendary head coaches went viral as they both exchanged words during what was supposed to be a postgame handshake. 

Six months later, Coach Staley addressed the incident while appearing on an episode of "Grey Matter Podcast" with host Declan Kelly. 

Although Staley hasn't done into much detail about the incident, she described what happened between her and Coach Geno as having "very little to do with a handshake." 

"Geno really thinks it's about the handshake, and it has very little to do with the handshake," Staley said. I respect, you know, what he's done for the game, and I think he's a genius of a coach. Understand this. When we played UConn, whether I was at Temple or here in South Carolina, and they were the overarching favorites, and they played that way, and they beat us 20, 30, 40 points. 

"I made a point to always, after the game, shake his hand, look him in his eye, congratulate him, and move on. I did it I purposefully, I made myself do that even though I probably was thinking and feeling some other way. Because I hate losing, I don't like losing but I made a point to do that because I knew the more we played them, the more we'd get acclimated to playing them. I thought that we would beat them at some point. And that's what started to happen."

Immediately after the game, both coaches made statements about what happened. Coach Auriemma later apologized for his actions towards Coach Staley after the game. Coach Staley stated a few days later that the two head coaches had spoken about what transpired, and chose to move on. 

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Of course, it's not surprising that Staley has chosen to address what happened, especially after so many months have transpired. 

Both South Carolina and UConn are expected to be national title contenders during the upcoming 2026-27 season. The Gamecocks were named the preseason No. 1 team in the AP Poll, with UConn getting the No. 2 spot. 

The good news is we don't have to wait until April to see these two head coaches face off against one another. South Carolina and UConn will play on Tuesday, Nov. 24 at 7 p.m. ET as part of the Hall of Fame Showcase in Uncasville, Conn. 

Both head coaches are expected to have a much more cordial meeting during the game, but it'll be interesting to see how both legends handle it.

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