Fair or unfair, the UConn women’s basketball team gets only a handful of chances to define its regular season. On the other side of the Werth Family Center, the men’s team gets what sometimes seems like nine lives.

With just two weeks remaining until March, the top 10 matchup between South Carolina and UConn could not come at a better time. Both teams have bounced back from losses earlier this month, but both coaches see this specific game as the perfect test for their squads.

UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma offered a compelling response to whether him and Dawn Staley's South Carolina Gamecocks program have built a rivalry.