Geno Auriemma Talks Dawn Staley Heated Exchange, Says 'You Just Feel Dumb' After Viral Video

UConn head coach Geno Auriemma said Monday he regrets his heated exchange with South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley during a Final Four matchup between the schools.

"When I walked into the locker room afterward with the coaches, you are just shaking your head, thinking five more seconds, you couldn't keep it in for five more seconds," Auriemma told reporters. "You just feel dumb for the way that it played out. We are all human and we all do dumb (stuff)."

Auriemma had words with Staley in the final seconds of South Carolina's 62-48 win, seemingly frustrated with how he perceived his counterpart to be working the refs and frustrated that he had to wait several minutes to greet Staley at halfcourt before the game. He later apologized for how he handled the postgame confrontation, however, saying he "lost himself."

Even so, there was plenty of backlash toward his behavior.

"I didn't see a lot of it, but that is to be expected," he said of the response to the situation. "I think maybe some of it was warranted and some of it was people have been lying in the weeds waiting for that moment. It doesn't matter what you've done for the game; it is what you just did. Unfortunately, that is the world that we live in today and it usually is one-sided. The people who understood what it was all about in a different light, they are not going to go on the air and say it. They are not going to write about it because now they are going against a major internet or media frenzy; they are not going to do that. I brought the criticism on myself. I didn't bring the (stuff) that came after it on myself."