Nothing to see here, just a couple of GOATs.
The NCAA Men’s and Women’s Final Fours are this weekend.
The Women will tip it off Friday in Phoenix with a familiar feel to it. The same four schools from last year are back for an encore performance with UCLA playing Texas in one semifinal and Connecticut playing South Carolina in the other. The championship is scheduled for Sunday afternoon.
The Final Four is nothing new to UConn head coach Geno Auriemma. It will be his 25th appearance on the sidelines for the Huskies in this environment. It’s worth noting there have only been 44 Women’s Final Fours … ever! It’s also worth noting this is the 17th time in the past 18 seasons that an Auriemma-coached UConn team has made this trip. And, should the Huskies wind up cutting the nets down on Sunday it will be his 13th National Championship and the team’s 56th consecutive victory without a loss.
The only other active coach with more than six Final Fours is Auriemma’s opponent Friday, South Carolina’s Dawn Staley has eight (including the last six).
The men tip off Saturday in Indianapolis with UConn facing Illinois in one semifinal and Arizona playing Michigan in the other. The title tilt, as it always is, will be Monday night.
Of the four coaches in the Final Four, Danny Hurley is making his third appearance in the past four seasons. That’s still a long way from all-time men’s Final Four appearance leader, retired Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, who made this journey 13 times. His 13th came in his final season on the sidelines (2022) which broke his tie with UCLA legend John Wooden who had a Auriemma-esque nine straight appearances from 1967-1975.
Here’s hoping you enjoy the final weekend of college basketball!
Just to review, The Fan Teaser was the creation of former Ann Arbor News Sports Editor Geoff Larcom. Longtime friend and fellow Ann Arbor News alum, Pat Schutte, took it to heights previously unknown. We aim to keep it alive here at The Sports Fan Project. The cropped photo and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.