“Goes to church every Sunday, rest of the week no good son of a b*tch”: Geno Auriemma recalls mother jokingly taking shots at "typical Italian" father

UConn women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma recalled an interesting anecdote from his childhood on the YouTube series "What Drives Winning" hosted by Brett Ledbetter and performance psychologist Dr. Jim Loehr.

The 11-time national champion recounted his childhood involving his Catholic parents. According to Auriemma, his father heard mass every Sunday morning while his mother stayed home.

"She would always point to my father on his way to the church (and says:) 'See that guy, he goes to church every Sunday. The rest of the week he no good son of a b*tch,'" Auriemma said. (21:10). "She was making fun of him in a way. Like 'he don't do anything, I do everything around the house.'"

The UConn coach added that his father was a "typical Italian" guy who let his wife do the household chores and didn't contribute at home. He said he learned a valuable lesson: living the right way is better than going to church every Sunday and doing bad things the rest of the week.

"She goes: 'Me, I live my life the right way every minute of every day. I don't need that he needs this,'" he added. (21:37).

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UConn coach Geno Auriemma admires his mother for not saying a negative word about anybody

UConn coach Geno Auriemma also spoke highly of his mother, claiming she always said nice things about the people she deals with every day.

Auriemma pointed out that she influenced him in his thought process and how he dealt with other people.

"My mom's never ever had a negative word to say about anybody in her entire life," Auriemma said. (21:59)

The Huskies mentor added his mother experienced a lot of challenges during her life, including the hardships of World War II. He valued the best advice his mother gave him when he left home for work:

"Work hard and make a lot of friends." (22:48)

Auriemma added that his mother was a friend to his players and a bigger inspiration to them when she was alive.

The UConn women's college basketball coach is in his 40th season in the NCAA, and he hopes to capture his 12th women's national championship, and first since 2016. He is one of the most successful women's basketball coaches of all time, with 1,223 wins and a 137-24 record in NCAA Tournaments.