After weeks of hearing his record in the Big East was ‘padded,’ Geno Auriemma is done being silent. He used his team’s national championships to throw shade at three NCAA conferences, leaving them embarrassed.

“We have more national championships, 13, than the Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC combined. We were in the American Athletic Conference for seven years when we had Stewie and those guys, and that conference was worse than this one… and we won four straight national championships,” said Geno Auriemma on the SiriusXM station with pride, which obviously is an embarrassing situation for the three conferences involved.

The strength of the schedule has always been a factor for UConn, where many felt they were in an easier conference, but Auriemma has totally thrown that logic out of the window, drawing comparison to the Breanna Stewart period, where they won 4 national championships back-to-back from 2013-2016.

While critics stay adamant that playing against weaker teams justifies their position as the No. 1 seed, their national title wins clearly show that it’s not the conference but the team that should be talked about.

While Auriemma is busy defending his program’s past, his focus is firmly on the present tournament, where a potential storyline involves a face from his coaching tree.

Geno Auriemma Looking Forward To Clash With Former Husky

When Geno Auriemma looks at how Shea Ralph has transformed Vanderbilt into an SEC contender, he takes great pride. After all, Shea was one of his proteges during his time here at Storrs. Not only did she play under Auriemma, but she also served as an assistant before she went to the Commodores.

With Vanderbilt in the same region as UConn, a compelling teacher-vs-student matchup for a trip to the Final Four is on the table.

“I hope we get to play Vanderbilt, because a lot has to happen before then. We play them, it means we’re in the final eight, and they’re in the final eight. So I hope we get a chance to play them,” he said, looking at the possibility of a potential matchup this year, barring any major upsets.

UConn (34-0) begins the tournament at home against UT-San Antonio, then faces either Iowa State or Syracuse in the second round. Now, if they move forward from there to the Sweet 16, they will face one of Fort Worth, Maryland, Murray State, North Carolina, or Western Illinois as a possible opponent.

On the opposite side of the bracket, Vanderbilt would have to get past teams like Notre Dame, Fairfield, Illinois, or Ohio State.

And what would be better than a Vanderbilt-UConn game? Ralph has been named the SEC Coach of the Year and National Coach of the Year by ESPN and The Athletic, and is holding a 27-4 record. Geno Auriemma is aiming for another title as he ended the regular season with a 34-0 record.

Many look at Ralph and think that she would be the one to take over as the head coach from Geno Auriemma. But any succession talk can wait. For now, fans are eagerly anticipating a potential showdown between the two coaches.