UConn’s Geno Auriemma responds to criticism from former Notre-Dame coach: “Muffet is bored”

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There hasn’t been a UConn women’s basketball lately, not since Dec. 19, and even the Huskies’ planned return to the field on Friday in Villanova is in jeopardy due to lingering issues with COVID-19, said Coach Geno Auriemma Monday during the UConn Women’s Basketball Coaches Show on ESPN 97.9 FM.

But the basketball vacuum hasn’t ruled out a national conversation about the program, started by former Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw. During a segment late last month with Kate Fagan and Jessica Smetana on the “Off The Looking Glass” podcast, she claimed there was an UConn bias at ESPN and beyond.

Coach’s Show host Bob Joyce spoke to Auriemma on Monday.

“I guess Muffet is bored,” Auriemma told Joyce. “I guess she doesn’t have much to say. And usually when she was coaching, when she was talking, no one was listening anyway. So I guess she thinks she has her rig now. …

“We’ve been on ESPN a lot. There are many other schools near ESPN. I don’t think the bias has anything to do with ESPN’s location or UConn’s location. I think the bias has something to do, if there is any, with the 11 national championships, which is a lot more than two, the last time I checked. At least I remembered it from Sesame Street. Eleven is a lot more than two.

McGraw coached the Irish at the national championships in 2000 and 2018 and retired after the 2019-20 season with a career record 936-292.

UConn and Notre Dame became the best rivalry in the sport after the breakup of the UConn-Tennessee and Auriemma series, whose career record is 1,125-147, and McGraw has long had a frosty relationship. In the December 22 podcast, McGraw cited and supported Candace Parker’s claim that she was kicked from the Olympic squad because Auriemma doesn’t like her. Auriemma, national team coach for the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, is now an advisor to the selection committee.

“He’s totally in control of who makes the team and who doesn’t,” said McGraw.

McGraw added that the rookie ranks are inflated after signing with UConn, and UConn has too many players on national awards watch lists.

“I think there is such a bias in the media,” McGraw said. “But I think it goes beyond that with ESPN. This is the Connecticut network. Notre Dame has NBC. Connecticut has ESPN. And that’s absolutely a complete bias there. “

UConn made his ESPN debut with his 1995 Martin Luther King Day game against Tennessee, a victory in what would become the Huskies’ first unbeaten national championship season. UConn has won 10 more titles since then and has appeared on ESPN more than any other program.

Auriemma made no comment on the day McGraw made his remarks.

He rang on Monday with Joyce.

“I just think it’s interesting when people say there’s a bias between us and ESPN,” Auriemma said. “I’m just glad we weren’t going 30 years between winning championships so maybe NBC should help them a little bit more. … Muffet is a bit lonely and wants to talk to someone and has found an outlet and wants to talk about UConn basketball and that’s it.

Auriemma added, with great sarcasm, that he was grateful for ESPN’s help in winning a record 111 straight games in 2014-17.

Auriemma also spoke about her team’s situation during the Coach’s Show.

UConn is expected to play at Villanova on Friday, but Auriemma is not optimistic that the game will take place as her side still do not have seven licensed and / or healthy players. One player tested positive for COVID while at home for the holidays, delaying her return to Connecticut, and several others tested positive after the Huskies resumed training on Boxing Day.

The Huskies were already without Paige Bueckers, who was injured Dec.5 against Notre Dame and then required knee surgery, and Azzi Fudd (foot), Nika Muhl (foot) and Aubrey Griffin (back). With Saylor Poffenbarger and Mir McLean having left the program, UConn had only eight players left.

“Add in a few cases of COVID and before you know it you’re looking at five, six players,” Auriemma said.

UConn is 6-3 and ranked No. 11 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll, released Monday. The Huskies’ last game was a loss to Louisville on Dec. 19 at Mohegan Sun Arena, their second loss in three games without injured players.

“I don’t think anyone throws a Connecticut pity party,” Auriemma said in her post-game press conference. “I’m not like other coaches I’ve seen over the years who cry because their team gets their ass kicked after winning so many games after all these years.”

The Huskies’ next three games have been called off – against Marquette on December 19 due to COVID issues at Marquette, road games at DePaul on December 31, and Wednesday in Georgetown due to COVID issues at UConn.

“You had a couple [positive cases] right away, then a few more a day or two later, ”Auriemma said. “Now the schedule is shifted, the return. We used to get an injury report, coming back from a sprained ankle. Now you get that out of COVID, whose days have passed.

“We have to see if by Friday if anyone can be ready to play, but the problem you’re having is if someone doesn’t follow the protocols, they still need five days to practice before they go.” to be able to play. So that doesn’t give you a lot of time between today and Friday. So your fingers are crossed, but I’m not overly optimistic about this.

Following the scheduled game against Villanova, UConn is set to face Creighton on Sunday at the Gampel Pavilion. UConn is expected to announce a modified participation model, perhaps with proof of vaccination required for those in attendance, in the meantime.

Bueckers is expected to return in early February. No timeline has been given on Fudd, Muhl, and Griffin. None would have been available in any of the canceled matches, Auriemma said, adding that Muhl had started training on the pitch and expected to gradually increase his workload.

The Big East will try to reschedule all games canceled due to COVID. UConn has three conference games to catch up on in addition to the 16 remaining, and three remaining valuable non-conference games mixed up on a busy schedule – Jan. 17 in Oregon, Jan. 27 in South Carolina, Feb. 26 against Tennessee in Hartford.

“There are two or three games every week in the future,” Auriemma said. “So I don’t know where you actually find the space to put these games. But who knows what else will happen in the future, how many more openings there will be somewhere on the line? But that’s the biggest challenge right now – how do we find spaces for those games we missed? “

[email protected]; @ManthonyHearst

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