Analyst claims Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma can 'call the shots' as UConn vs South Carolina matchup dropped from schedule 

Geno Auriemma's UConn got the better of Dawn Staley's South Carolina in the championship game in April. However, the two teams won't face each other in the 2025-26 regular season after having met in the regular season fixtures in each of the past 11 years.

The reason why the Gamecocks and Huskies won't have a regular-season clash next season is due to the expiration of the series contract, with the teams not agreeing to a new one. However, analyst Chelsea Sherrod believes that Auriemma and Staley have the power to make decisions for their respective teams and whether the series will be played in the future.

Sherrod shared her thoughts on the "Big East Energy Network" show on Friday:

"I don't know if I see either of them (Staley and Auriemma) letting personal feelings or vendetta, so to speak, get in the way of this either. I don't know. But again, like, they are such powerhouses, in Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma, that they can call the shots and kind of just be like, 'Alright, we're just not going to do that this year and we're just going to move forward.'

"Also, to be quite frank, too, Geno could be saying, you know, 'we went down to South Carolina, smoked them on their court, ended that really long home winning streak that they had, and then in a national championship game, won by like 30 (points).' So, like 'I have all of my players returning except for Paige.'

"Obviously, Paige was, like, the driving force of that team. And I'm not diminishing or downplaying who Paige Bueckers is at all, but he's just like, what are we gaining from this matchup, too?" (Timestamp 7:51)

UConn and South Carolina have played each other 16 times. The Huskies hold the edge in the H2H department with 11 wins, while the Gamecocks have five wins in the series.

Although UConn and South Carolina won't face each other in the 2025-26 regular season, they could draw each other in the postseason.

Geno Auriemma vs. Dawn Staley H2H record

South Carolina HC Dawn Staley (L) and UConn HC Geno Auriemma (R) - Source: Getty

Geno Auriemma holds a 10-5 edge over Dawn Staley in head-to-head games. He also holds a 2-1 record over Staley's Gamecocks in the postseason. Staley has won five of the last eight meetings against Auriemma, including one that came in the 2023 title game when South Carolina beat UConn; however, Auriemma's UConn got its revenge in the championship game this season.

It will be interesting to see if UConn and South Carolina will face each other in the playoffs in the upcoming season. There is a good chance that both teams will make deep runs in the NCAA Tournament, given their recent history and respective strengths.