TAMPA, Fla. — Cori Close had a unique opportunity after her first season leading UCLA women’s basketball.
The Bruins didn’t make the NCAA Tournament after that 2011-12 season, and she decided to make use of her extra offseason time. She called former Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw and UConn coach Geno Auriemma, asking if she could come watch practice to learn from them.
Both McGraw and Auriemma obliged, and Close spent the first two rounds watching Notre Dame prepare for March Madness. Then she went to Storrs, Connecticut to watch Auriemma work.
‘It was just tremendous,’ Close said Thursday during a media day ahead of the women’s NCAA Tournament Final Four. ‘And the next year, in October, I brought my entire staff out to watch (Auriemma’s) practice. He’s a master teacher … When people who have set the standard of the game are willing to reach back and teach somebody else, it goes a long way.’
It was a formative experience for Close as she began to build a program in Los Angeles. The next season, UCLA went 26-8 and made it to the NCAA Tournament second round. Six Sweet 16 appearances and one Elite Eight later, Close will lead No. 1 seed UCLA (34-2) against the No. 2 seed Huskies (35-3) in the Final Four at Amalie Arena on Friday (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).
‘If I had known, I wouldn’t have let her in,’ Auriemma joked.
Auriemma remembers when he was a young coach, especially at the high school level, he always admired the coaches who were open and willing to share their ideas.
Auriemma, now in his 40th season with UConn said he’s never been one to want to hide anything in the name of competitive advantage. Auriemma even had three players from rival Tennessee come watch for practice for a few days. Basketball is basketball, Auriemma said, and he believes it’s part of his job to share amongst coaches if they ‘have anything that’s worth it.’
‘You can’t worry about anything else,’ Auriemma said. ‘Our relationship, and through USA Basketball, Cori and I got to know each other a little bit. And we both share a passion for wines. Her energy and all that she has, that she brings is just infectious. I’m glad when coaches have success. That’s what we’re here for.’
Friday’s matchup is an interesting dynamic. Close is going up against someone who mentored her and shared invaluable knowledge that helped her build the top program in the country this season. Close led UCLA to its first Final Four appearance ever, and now she’s tasked with taking down a program that’s making its 24th appearance, which is an NCAA record. The Huskies are 12-11 all time in Final Four games.
On paper, UConn is the underdog Friday. But in reality, and in the grander scheme of history, it feels like UCLA is. And it’s felt like the Bruins have been viewed as a bit of an underdog all season, Close said.
‘We’ve spent more time as number one in the country all year long and we were the most non-talked-about No. 1 team in history,’ Close said. ‘But I can’t complain about that because I think it allowed our team to stay focused on the right things.’
UCLA star Lauren Betts said, ‘It almost feels like we don’t have any pressure on us right now. We don’t really care what other people say about us.’
Close said she isn’t bothered by the lack of attention on her team, and she loves the media coverage of the sport. She also credited UConn for earning the attention going into the matchup, because she saw ‘a real turn in them’ over the last six weeks of the season.
The history of UConn also lends to more coverage. The Huskies are attempting to win their first national championship since 2016.
But Close said she’s fine playing the underdog, whether they truly are or not, and she feels confident going into the matchup. She watched the Bruins start out ‘not a very confident team’ and earn it little by little. They haven’t been surprised by anything, preparing to win step by step, starting with South Carolina in November. This is just the next hurdle.
‘We’re not preparing to be here; we’re preparing to win,’ Close said. ‘We’re trying to prepare in such a way that we have the confidence to do so.’