Throughout the past decade and a half, the University of Connecticut has held their women’s basketball team to a standard far above that of any basketball program in that span. Head Coach Geno Auriemma has created a rare cultivation of talent and consistency that is nothing short of magnificent. To make this accomplishment even more admirable is the high level of play across the nation when it comes to Women’s Basketball. Athletes have come and gone, but Auriemma has maintained the University’s level of excellence regardless of who he has on his roster.

With eight championships since the turn of the century, UConn has consistently made laughing stocks of other respectable Division 1 programs, as evident in their last game, beating conference rival 87 to 24. Even supreme physical specimens like Brittney Griner could not escape the utter dominance of Connecticut. Griner, despite perhaps being the most dominating college basketball player of all time, was held to a single national championship during her tenure at Baylor in large part due to Connecticut’s reign of terror. More impressive than their eight championships in the past 14 years is the fact that the team has made it to the “final four” every year since dating back to 2008. Only UCLA coach John Wooden, who once racked up an 88-game winning streak, has accomplished such a feat. It should also be mentioned that only two coaches have ever won more than 70 games straight in college basketball, and they are Geno Auriemma and John Wooden. The only difference is that Auriemma has achieved such an unimaginable accomplishment not once, but twice, the latter extending to a record-breaking 90 games.

To further add to Auriemma’s impeccable resume, Connecticut graduates have gone on to have more success in the WNBA than any other program since the league was formed in 1996. With MVP’s like Maya Moore and Diana Taurasi, Auriemma has proved that he prepares his players for success long after their college careers are over. The coach has sent 27 players on to play in the WNBA, 15 of whom were selected in the first round, and considering that there are only 12 teams and the league has been around for less than two decades, this statistic is nothing to scoff at. This says a lot about the program Auriemma runs and he understands as well as anyone that life is bigger than college basketball, and he focuses on instilling values like teamwork and leadership that will prepare his players for the next level of play.

Auriemma’s brilliance is not truly realized and basketball fans are in the middle of witnessing history. The dominance that has been displayed by Connecticut players over the past 15 years is something to marvel at and is unlikely to be paralleled in any sports for a long while.