"Every time was a big game": When Geno Auriemma reminisced rivalry with Pat Summitt

Geno Auriemma and Pat Summitt, two of the most decorated basketball coaches in history, revolutionized the women's game. Together, they shared a storied rivalry and 20 national championships between them.

When Summitt breathed his last in June 2016 after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease, the sports world mourned the loss of a true legend, including Auriemma, who shared his thoughts on Summitt's legacy in a conversation with SNY.

"Every time the women's basketball story is told, it always seems to start with Pat Summitt, with Tennessee, with all the things that have happened down there all these years," Auriemma said. "... The impact on all of us coaches, simply because of how much attention Tennessee got and what they were able to bring to the media and the fans — and, you know, they were the only ones that were doing it at the time.

"It's sad to see it, you know, be this way because I think when you get to a certain age, you want to be able to look back and reflect on your career and the impact that you've had on so many people. It's unfortunate that she's not going to get a chance to do that."

Summitt was 10 years into her tenure as Tennessee's coach when Geno Auriemma took over the UConn job in 1985.

Their paths wouldn't intersect for a decade before they clashed in January 1995 at Gampel Pavilion. The two programs faced off once again in the NCAA championship game that season, where the Huskies beat the Lady Vols to secure their first national title — solidifying the foundation of their rivalry.

Auriemma and Summitt would face each other 22 times over 12 years, with the Huskies going 13-9.

"The games that we had with them ... it seemed like every time was a big, big game," Auriemma added.

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Geno Auriemma reflects on rivalry with Pat Summitt and media influence

At the start of their rivalry, it was more of a UConn-Tennessee battle, but as the years progressed, it shifted into a Geno-Pat narrative.

On The Seth Davis Show in 2015, Geno Auriemma addressed the media’s role in amplifying his rivalry with Pat Summitt.

"It was not so much my team and her team, or me and her — I think it was what was going on around us," Auriemma said. "People wanted to make it Geno versus Pat. So it stopped being Connecticut versus Tennessee; it became Geno versus Pat."

Geno Auriemma and Pat Summitt played their final game against each other in 2007 before the series ended.