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On Sunday afternoon in Tampa, UConn easily beat South Carolina 82-59 to win the 12th national title in program history.
While the win completed the dozen for head coach Geno Auriemma, it was especially special for super senior Paige Bueckers, who has been chasing this championship her entire career. This was the only thing missing from her collegiate resume, and when she finally checked the box on Sunday, Bueckers became overwhelmed with emotions. With 1:32 left in the game and the victory in hand, she was subbed out and fell into the arms of Auriemma. There were tears of joy on both sides as their epic tale got its deserved storybook ending.
Here are the best moments from Bueckers’ long-awaited championship celebration, beginning with her hug with her head coach:
It’s all love between Paige and Geno
During Auriemma’s on-court postgame interview with ESPN’s Holly Rowe, he revealed the three words he told his star player, and it was the one phrase we all want to hear from the people who are invested in our lives: “I love you.”
“I love you. That’s all I can say. I love you.”
Geno Auriemma’s words to Paige Bueckers after winning the national championship ❤️ pic.twitter.com/8DW9CjbD8G
— THE SHIFT (@theshift_sports) April 6, 2025
Geno, the coach, mentor and parental-like figure, said he loved Paige, but what did she say back in return? Well, during her postgame press conference, she revealed her response.
Paige’s got jokes!
In classic protégé fashion, Bueckers said exactly what a person who has taken orders from someone thinks: “I hate you.”
“He told me he loved me and I told him I hated him,” Bueckers said. “But we both love each other, even though we hate each other some days.”
Bueckers then elaborated on the emotions she felt as she shared a hug with all her teammates and the rest of the UConn staff, saying:
But yeah, just every single relationship that I’ve built throughout the years here. You just try to encapsulate it in one hug for five seconds. But just every single person that I went down the line and hugged, just meant so much to me, and so meant so much to the team. So, just like I’ve been saying, just a state of gratitude.
Cutting down the net
Once the clock hit triple zero, the court was pandemonium, and Bueckers soaked it all in. When she cut down the net, the crowd erupted again.
Hugs for the fam
As soon as she exited the court with the net hanging around her neck like a gold chain, Bueckers rushed to her family and embraced them for the first time as a national champion.
A title fueled by Gordon Ramsay?
Plenty of folks from the basketball world and beyond will gives Bueckers her deserved flowers. Many have already shared their joy for Bueckers winning it all, and one of the best came from celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay.
He seems to be a big fan of the Huskies and took some credit for the win. Well, he gave the praise to his Beef Wellington, tongue in cheek, of course.
Except for the South Carolina fans, who obviously wanted the result to go the other way, everyone should be pleased that the basketball gods rewarded Bueckers with this title. During her years at UConn, she went through it all. She suffered an ACL tear in 2022, heartbreak in the Final Four in 2024, and now, in 2025, she won it all.
The rest of this year and beyond will be written in the WNBA, and while the turnaround from now to draft day on April 14 is unfairly quick, let’s at least take the next 24 hours or so to let Bueckers bask in her greatness.
She has eliminated the answer to the Jeopardy-like question: “Who is the greatest UConn women’s basketball player to never have won a national title?” Instead, she has cemented herself as one of the greatest Huskies ever.
