"I was scared of him": Paige Bueckers reveals first impression of Geno Auriemma and "walking on eggshells" around him during UConn recruiting

The chemistry Paige Bueckers shares with her UConn coach Geno Auriemma is a far cry from the initial impression she had of him. During Wednesday's media session ahead of the Creighton matchup, Bueckers was asked about her first meeting with the Hall of Fame coach.

"I was scared of him. I was timid. I didn’t want to say the wrong thing," Bueckers said. "During the recruiting process, I just wanted to be like kind of walking on eggshells in a way, where I was nervous to talk to him. [12:42]

"But he's very open, honest, personable, like, he has a great personality and he cares. He has a great heart. And yeah, I think honest is the best thing I can say."

A reporter then asked Bueckers if she first talked to Auriemma over the phone during the recruitment process before meeting him in person, to which she responded affirmatively. She even joked about how she answered Auriemma's first phone call, saying:

"What's up Big G?"

Bueckers quickly clarified that she instead used a more formal greeting.

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Geno Auriemma reflects on love-hate relationship with Paige Bueckers

During the pregame media availability before the Creighton game, Geno Auriemma spoke at length about his complicated dynamic with her star player Paige Bueckers.

"My relationship with Paige, it's one of those where love and hate, I guess they call it, right? I love it when I hate her, and she loves when she hates me," Auriemma said (via @ForGoodAri tweet).

"There's something I want her to do and she's arguing with me about it, there's something that she wants, and I'm not letting her do it. So our relationship on the court is I'm constantly b**ching about something I want her to do ... so we're always going back and forth."

Auriemma revealed that their dynamic is playful, yet competitive, as he pushes Bueckers to grow as a player, challenging her to reach her full potential.

Paige Bueckers will likely be playing her final regular season game at Gampel Pavilion against Marquette on Sunday. The 6-foot senior guard is expected to leave for the WNBA after this season. She will try to make the best of her limited time playing under Auriemma and try to win him the 12th national championship of his career.