UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma on Saturday apologized for his actions at the conclusion of his team’s loss to South Carolina in the Women’s Final Four in Phoenix.

With the final seconds winding down on the Gamecocks’ 62-48 victory on Friday, South Carolina coach Dawn Staley and Auriemma walked toward each other as though they were about to shake hands.

However, Auriemma didn’t extend his hand, instead saying something to Staley, who reacted angrily, and the two had to be separated. Auriemma was ushered away, then soon walked back past Staley, who continued to yell at him before her staffers surrounded her and appeared to be trying to calm her.

“There’s no excuse how I handled the end of the game vs. South Carolina,” Auriemma said in a statement. “It’s unlike what I do and what our standard is here at Connecticut. I want to apologize to the staff and team at South Carolina. It was uncalled for in how I reacted. The story should be how well South Carolina played, and I don’t want my actions to detract from that. I’ve had a great relationship with their staff, and I want to sincerely apologize to them.”

Subsequently asked on ESPN Friday what led to the dispute, Staley said, “I have no idea. But I’mma let you know this: I’m of integrity. I’m of integrity. 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 he came with after the game. But hey, sometimes things get heated, we move on.”

Staley later said in a press conference, “You can ask Geno the question — he’s the one that initiated the conversation. I don’t want what happened to dampen what we were able to accomplish today.”

Auriemma told ESPN, “There were six fouls called that (third) quarter, all of ‘em against us. And they’ve been beating the s– out of our guys down there the entire game. Now I’m not making excuses because we haven’t been able to make a shot, but this is ridiculous. Their coach rants and raves on the sideline and calls the referees some names you don’t wanna hear. And now we got six to zero, and I got a kid with a ripped jersey and (the refs) say, ‘I didn’t see it.'”

Staley, 55, has the Gamecocks (36-3) one win away from their third NCAA championship in five years and her fourth as the program’s head coach.

Auriemma, 72, is the NCAA’s all-time winningest basketball coach. He has led the Huskies to 12 national titles, with the most recent one coming last year. UConn took its first loss of this season on Friday, ending the campaign 38-1.

–Field Level Media