FORT WORTH, Texas Geno Auriemma does not say things unintentionally. There is no comment he utters that he doesnt mean, or at least that he doesnt intend to stir up a certain reaction.Sure, he admits, he says things he doesnt necessarily believe.This wasnt it.I dont know if Ive ever been prouder to take a team to the Final Four than this one, Auriemma said while accepting his 25th regional championship trophy.He capped it with a lasso line dance, settling on a proper cowboy hat, his feet surrounded by confetti and KK Arnold goading him for more.It was all the players needed to see.When he breaks out a dance move, thats how you know hes proud, Azzi Fudd said."You know people say 'that's 25 for you'. Well that's no. 1 for Blanca, no. 1 for Heckel, no. 1 for Serah Williams." - Geno Auriemma #MarchMadness x ABC / @UConnWBBpic.twitter.com/AVKJSez2wg NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) March 29, 2026Its a word coaches overuse this time of year. Theyre proud of their group making it to the Sweet 16. Then the Elite Eight. Theyre proud in wins and losses, in great performances and battling through bad ones.Proud is relative.Those coaches arent the winningest ones in basketball history, flipping through the Rolodex of elite talent they all envy. Theyre not the 12-time national champions. They cant even sniff a stretch of 17 Final Fours in 18 years this team is on. Auriemma and the Huskies have competed in more than half of the NCAA Final Fours held.And while devastating, when most of those other proud coaches teams lose, its not an earth-shattering travesty, leading sports shows around the country that barely devote time to the sport otherwise.So, yeah, he definitely means it when he says hes proud of them for clinching the seasons first Final Four berth in a 70-52 win over rival Notre Dame that preserved the 54-game winning streak, a 38-0 season and the Fort Worth 1 regional title.Getting all the way to this point undefeated is a lot of baggage to carry, right? Auriemma said. I mean, every day somebody is coming after you to break your streak.Auriemma does not coach quietly or calmly, even if his teams on the court exemplify it. He expects more no matter the circumstance. His alumni's stories become legendary tales that dont grow larger every time theyre told. He really did make that comment to Sue Birds teams during a heated game against Pat Summit and rival Tennessee. Yes, he literally left Breanna Stewart to run stadiums for one missed rebound.And the 8-vs-5 practices? Oh, he definitely did that.His proudest team is one of his most dominant. Its 51.1 net rating ranks third all-time behind the title teams of 2015 and 2016. Those rosters were more mature, he said, helmed in 2016 by seniors Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck. The trio won four titles in four years; the 2014 and 2016 teams went undefeated.This roster is younger after losing fifth-year seniors Paige Bueckers, the reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year, and Kaitlyn Chen, one of UConns dozens of WNBA stars.Geno Auriemma dances with his team after securing a spot in the Final Four. (Photo by Andy Hancock/NCAA Photos/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)Andy Hancock/NCAA Photos via Getty ImagesFudd, the fifth-year senior who returned on a redshirt, is the most experienced, but its sophomore Sarah Strong who stepped into a leadership role. The forward is en route to Naismith National Player of the Year as the versatile Swiss Army Knife who, even in tough situations, can fight through for a 20-piece. KK Arnold and Ashlyn Shade were thrown into the pressure-fueled fire as freshmen on a decimated roster.Opposing coaches harp on UConns depth. North Carolina head coach Courtney Banghart was proud of her team after the Sweet 16 loss for making the Huskies go to Plan B and Plan B and Plan C and even Plan D.Theyre just that good, she said after a 63-42 loss that was closer in the first half than the final score would indicate.It was Blanca Quionez, the sneaky freshman and fearless X-factor, who stepped in as an international player wise beyond her collegiate years. Her team-high 14 first-half points served as a pressure-valve while Strong and Fudd were hounded by the Notre Dame defense. She finished with 20 and an all-tournament team nod, along with Fudd and Strong, who was named Most Outstanding Player.None of this is new. Not the Final Four berth, an accomplishment that runs business-like for the Huskies. No cut nets, no exuberance. The team flashed more smiles meeting Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving than for winning a regional title.Not the smooth-running offense resulting in 18 assists on 24 baskets. Nor the defense that limited Hannah Hidalgo, labeled by Auriemma as the best point guard in the country, by impacting her ability to get into the paint and find teammates. She went off in bursts, but never more.Six of Auriemmas UConn teams won in undefeated seasons. More reached this point unblemished, shattered when it all ended.So proud? That makes sense. Even the most demanding coaches are proud of accomplishments. But proudest? Its far from the first of his teams to handle an undefeated season at this point. Six went on to win a title unblemished, and this line dancing group hasnt even landed in Phoenix yet.Maybe because we don't walk around with that attitude, Auriemma said.Hes digging into his Rolodex now. First, its Jamelle Elliott and Jen Rizzotti of the 1995 championship team, his first. Bird, Diana Taurasi, Asjha Jones, Swin Cash and Tamika Williams won undefeated in 2002 before seven of those players went on to WNBA careers. In the 2010s, it was Maya Moore, Tina Charles and Stewart.They walked around like, what did you think we were going to lose? Why are you surprised were undefeated? Auriemma said.But Auriemma doesnt say things he doesnt mean. There is no bravado or audacious remarks on this roster. No on-court dust-ups or locker room material.This group, they don't have that kind of swagger, trash-talking kind of mentality, Auriemma said. That's why I think for me I just keep my fingers crossed because it's not the kind of team that I've had in the past that has gone this far undefeated.No, the swaggiest thing in UConns locker room is Auriemmas cowboy hat. And the most boastful remarks will be in his phone, a three-decade collection of champions asking Never been prouder? Really?