Geno Auriemma is an opinionated fellow who frequently makes headlines for his strong comments. This week is no exception.
During a conference call with reporters ahead of his UConn women’s team’s trip to the Final Four, Auriemma criticized the quality of men’s college basketball, calling it a “joke” for the lack of offensive production.
“I don’t coach it. I don’t play it, so I don’t understand the ins and outs of it. But as a spectator watching it, it’s a joke. There’s only like 10 teams, you know, out of 25, that actually play the kind of game of basketball that you’d like to watch,” Auriemma said.
“The bottom line is, nobody can score,” Auriemma said. “And they’ll tell you that it’s because of great defense, great scouting, a lot of teamwork. Nonsense, nonsense. College men’s basketball is so far behind the times it’s unbelievable.”
Auriemma’s comments are curious considering that most people believe the competition is lacking in women’s college basketball. UConn and Tennessee alone have combined to win 17 national championships. The disparity in talent between schools is so great that hardly any upsets occur early in the tournament. Is that entertainment?
“This is entertainment we are talking about,” Auriemma said. “People have to decide, do I want to spend 25 bucks, 30 bucks to go see a college scrum where everybody misses six of every 10 shots they take or do I want to go to a movie?
“We are fighting for the entertainment dollar here, and I have to tell you, it’s not entertainment from a fan’s standpoint.”
Maybe Auriemma’s point isn’t to argue that the women’s game is better, higher quality, or more entertaining. Maybe he’s just simply complaining about the men’s game.
We can tell you without a doubt that high-quality basketball teams such as Kentucky attract great numbers of viewers. However, I’m with Geno in that when it comes to watching basketball, I much prefer the NBA to college because the quality is so much better. He’s right; it’s not a lot of fun watching teams struggle to get to 50 points.
