Geno Auriemma
Head Coach
UConn Women’s Basketball
Geno Auriemma has redefined the meaning of success in women’s college basketball in his 28 years as head coach of the University of Connecticut.
During his illustrious tenure, Auriemma has transformed the UConn program into the standard that all others are measured, both on and off the court.
Under his guidance, the Huskies have been transformed from a program with only one winning season, to its current state, which includes eight national titles, 14 Final Fours, four perfect seasons (1995, 2002, 2009, 2010) and 37 BIG EAST titles, all since Auriemma’s arrival in 1985.
On the court, his success includes eight national championships, including perfect 39-0 title runs in 2009 and 2010, as well as complete dominance in the BIG EAST Conference. Off the court, success means a flawless, 100 percent graduation rate among four year players and one of the most beloved and followed sports teams in the country.
This unmatched success, which is the standard for collegiate programs nationally, was recognized with Auriemma’s induction into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (Springfield, Mass.) and the Women Basketball Hall of Fame (Knoxville, Tenn.) in 2006.
In addition, Auriemma recently finished a successful four-year term as he was named the head coach of the U.S. National Team, which won the gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Auriemma’s squad, which included six former Huskies, posted a spotless 8-0 record en route to the gold medal.
He is the first coach in women’s basketball history to guide a team to five consecutive Final Four appearances on two separate occasions and the current run of six-consecutive Final Four appearances is also a record. Auriemma is a seven-time national coach-of-the-year and has been named the BIG EAST coach-of-the-year 10 times. In all Auriemma has garnered a combined total of 24 National Coach of the Year honors.
His 28-year overall record stands at 839-133 (.863), by far the best winning percentage among active Division I coaches and he became only the sixth coach all-time to eclipse the 800-win mark on the same night he led the Huskies to a fifth-straight BIG EAST Tournament Championship on March 6, 2012. Auriemma reached win number 800 in fewer games than any coach in the history of the game.
Under Auriemma, UConn has captured both the BIG EAST regular season and conference title in the same season 15 times.
The Huskies have won the BIG EAST Tournament crown in seven of the past nine seasons. Connecticut extended its streak of consecutive NCAA Regional appearances to 20 straight and advanced to the NCAA Final Four for the 14th time in the program’s history. Auriemma also guided UConn to its 18th 30-win season in 2012-13 and its 18th in the past 20 seasons.
Auriemma is a 1981 graduate of West Chester with a B.A. in political science.
