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UConn Women’s Basketball Coach Geno Auriemma: “We’ve Got A Real Spoiled Group Of Fans”

UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma is nothing if not an obnoxiously cocky piece of work, but the same qualities that make him so easy and fun to dislike (and there’s no question he revels in others’ hatred) also always put him on the verge of a good quote. And when his Huskies blew out Purdue last night in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in front of a half-empty home crowd, he wasn’t about to bite his tongue.

OK, while the obnoxious cockiness we described above makes it difficult for us to actually like Auriemma, we can certainly find it in ourselves to enjoy the sarcasm dripping from his nearly every word. “Probably have to win more games” – well, of course they don’t. They’ve lost once in the last three seasons. “Letting some of the fans participate in coaching the team, maybe a guest coach every quarter” – he was apparently so furious he even forgot college basketball games are divided into halves.

Where Auriemma was serious, according to this report, was in suggesting the school not host opening-round NCAA games in the coming years. We wonder, though, if it’s more a heat-of-the-moment idea that, if carried through, might just make him look petulant. Of course, if any coach has a recent record of success that excuses the occasional attendance-related outburst, it’s him. His team is amazing, playing NCAA Tournament games on campus. That deserves a sellout, so in this case, we’ll have to grudgingly admit Geno has a point.