“Caitlin Clark broke Pete Maravich’s record for most points, well that’s bullsh*t”: When Geno Auriemma heaped praise for ex-Iowa star

Geno Auriemma and the UConn Huskies opened their games after the holidays with a 67-41 drubbing of the Providence Friars. Uncorking their 11th win of the season in 13 tries, the storied program now looks on to Big East Conference games coming up.

Amidst all that, Auriemma has been known to produce college stars who have gone on to become WNBA standouts, like Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird. The same cannot be said for Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, though, as she was under the tutelage of Jan Jensen in college.

In a sit-down interview with Stephanie Ruhle produced by NBC News in June, Auriemma was all praise for Clark despite not playing under him, as she has elevated the growth and popluarity of woman's basketball with her superb play and skillset.

The 11-time national champion coach compared her with a college legend:

"She's like Pete Maravich. ...He did things that before that had never been done before. But like anything else, things get blown out of proportion right. So, there's a narrative created around it," he explained. (Timestamp: 7:00)

"Caitlin Clark broke Pete Maravich's record for most points scored in her career. Well, that's bullsh*t because Caitlin Clark had four years to do it and a 3-point line. Pete Maravich did it in three years with no 3-point line, and he would've scored 6000 points," Geno Auriemma detailed.

Maravich played for the LSU program from 1967 to 1970 before he churned out a respected 10-year NBA career, bouncing around from the Atlanta Hawks all the way to the Boston Celtics. During his time as a renowned basketball player, "Pistol Pete" was known to have an unorthodox scoring playstyle, which has influenced how the game is played today.

In comparison, Clark has made her name right from her days as an Iowa Hawkeye. She broke numerous college scoring records with her long-distance 3-point shooting and shifty handles, which were unheard of in women's basketball before. Now that she's with the Fever, there's optimism that she can replicate the same success in the WNBA.

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Geno Auriemma says that sports narratives are built from comparisons

Geno Auriemma is one of the most decorated college coaches of all time with his now 40-year tenure at the helm of the UConn Huskies program.

He has seen how basketball has revolutionized as the years have gone by. Geno Auriemma said that past versus present comparions fuel the narratives that are talked about today.

"So, the narrative gets created and people get elevated based on today's values, and we need somebody to compare it to. So, that made the story even bigger and now more people latched on to it," Auriemma said. (7:45)

The main tactitian went on to credit Clark for handling it well, as there's hope that she will keep up with the narratives and expectations in her budding WNBA stardom.