The UConn Huskies lost to the South Carolina Gamecocks 62-48 in the women’s Final Four semifinals on April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. This ended their 54-game winning streak. During a live TV interview, legendary UConn coach Geno Auriemma went off on the refs, saying they made inconsistent calls while his team shot only 19 of 61. Things got really heated in the last few seconds when Auriemma confronted South Carolina’s Dawn Staley at midcourt, and assistants had to pull the two coaching legends apart.
Star players Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd didn’t do well at all. Strong only scored 12 points on 25% shooting, and Fudd only scored eight on 20% shooting, including 2-of-9 from three. Auriemma later doubled down after the game, saying he had no regrets about the viral fight and praising his team’s dominance all season. Dawn Staley talked about the incident calmly at her press conference and then moved on to South Carolina’s national championship game against UCLA or Texas.
This isn’t the first time Auriemma and Staley have had a disagreement; there have been similar arguments about officiating in the past, but the 2026 Final Four made things even more tense. South Carolina moves on without a hitch, using their strong defense to shut down UConn’s offense in a statement win. Fans and analysts are talking about the referee’s criticism, and video clips of the fight are going viral on all platforms.
