It will be mentor against student when Geno Auriemma and the Huskies meet Vanderbilt in 2027 and 2028. The Commodores are coached by former UConn guard Shea Ralph.
UConn women’s basketball and coach Geno Auriemma continue to line up elite nonconference opponents, and the latest schedule addition has a personal twist.
On Wednesday, UConn and Vanderbilt, currently ranked No. 1 and No. 5, respectively, announced a home-and-home series to be played in the 2027-28 and 2028-29 seasons. The two teams are the last remaining undefeated Division I teams in the nation, both 19-0.
A news release from Vanderbilt said the games will be played on UConn’s home court on Nov. 14, 2027, and at Memorial Gymnasium in Nashville, Tenn., on Nov. 19, 2028.
Vanderbilt’s head coach is Shea Ralph, who played at UConn from 1996-2001, then returned to Storrs as an assistant to Auriemma from 2008-21. She left UConn to become head coach at Vanderbilt ahead of the 2021-22 season.
The Shea Ralph file
Ralph graduated from UConn in 2001 after her All-American career in Storrs. She was a captain of the team that won the 2000 NCAA Tournament championship and was named the most outstanding player of the Final Four that year. She also was the 2000 Big East Player of the Year.
When her college playing career was over, Ralph stood in the UConn top 10 in points (1,678), assists (456) and field goal percentage (.579).
The Utah Starzz selected her in the 2001 WNBA Draft, but a knee injury kept her from playing professionally.
Instead, she turned to coaching, starting with a five-year stint as an assistant at Pitt before joining Auriemma’s staff. In her span at UConn, the Huskies went to 12 consecutive Final Fours and won six titles.
What Shea Ralph said
Ralph has a 92-59 overall record (64-21 Southeastern Conference) in her tenure as head coach of the Commodores. She has taken them to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments.
Scheduling top opponents is key for her program’s growth, she said.
“I am so excited for this opportunity to compete against UConn and to return to the place where this journey began for me,” Ralph said, per the news release. “It will be special to see the fans, coaches, administrators, teammates and friends who have been part of my journey. Our mission at Vanderbilt is to compete for championships and this series will serve as another opportunity to prepare us for those goals.”
Vanderbilt’s 19-0 start is the best in program history.
Auriemma spoke about Ralph earlier this week, marveling about how she has turned around a team that hadn’t had a winning record since 2015-16 or played in an NCAA Tournament since 2014 before her arrival.
"I enjoy watching them play," Auriemma said of the Commodores. "To go down there and do what she's done in such a short period of time, I think, is really cool.
"I'm really happy for all of them. It's not easy to do what she's done. She's so detail-oriented. She's so competitive in so many ways. [She's] a great teacher."
UConn vs. Vanderbilt
The teams have met eight times, and UConn holds a 6-2 lead in the series.
The Commodores won the first two games – both played in 1992 – and the Huskies have won the past six. Their last head-to-head meeting came Nov. 13, 2019, when then-No. 4 UConn defeated Vanderbilt 64-51 in Nashville.
Other teams on UConn schedule
The Huskies have tough opponents on their 2026-27 schedule.
On Nov. 24, UConn will face current No. 2 South Carolina as part of the Hall of Fame Classic in Uncasville, Conn. The Huskies won the national title in 2025 after the Gamecocks had won two of the previous three.
UConn also will face 2023 national champion LSU next season on a date still to be announced.
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