Arizona's Adia Barnes rightfully won't apologize for viral moment

Arizona’s Adia Barnes rightfully won’t apologize for viral on-camera moment after beating UConn

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS - APRIL 02: Head coach Adia Barnes of the Arizona Wildcats calls out to players against the UConn Huskies during the second quarter in the Final Four semifinal game of the 2021 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at the Alamodome on April 02, 2021 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

Arizona head coach Adia Barnes has no reason to apologize for her excitement following her team’s Final Four victory over Connecticut.

The Arizona Wildcats were true underdogs Friday night against Connecticut. So much for that narrative.

Adia Barnes’ squad led from the start and proved the doubters to be fools. The big win led to an exciting moment following the game when Barnes gathered her team and basically told the haters to shove it. Cameras captured the moment and as always, some people made it into an issue.

Barnes is rightfully not apologizing for her genuine reaction.

https://twitter.com/AdiaBarnes/status/1378327741074976770

Adia Barnes has zero reasons to apologize

What is the problem here? As Barnes states, she was excited in the moment and happens to be the head coach of a college basketball team. That fire and passion are supposed to be celebrated, especially after such a monumental win in program history.

Barnes also notes how this was supposed to be a private moment. She was speaking with her team and it’s not her fault she was caught on camera. Wildcats fans should be all over this type of reaction.

"... I'm not apologizing for it because I don't feel like I need to apologize. It's what I felt with my team at the moment. I wouldn't take it back."

—Adia Barnes after using a middle finger and an expletive in the postgame huddle during their win over UConn pic.twitter.com/K6jEXNyO2l
— espnW (@espnW) April 3, 2021

This is yet another situation where some fake outrage could emerge on social media that clouds the true national reaction of the population. UConn fans may chime in on the matter, but the overall sentiment should be that Barnes was being a great coach.

She showed up in 2016 and had two losing seasons off the bat. Then came a Women’s NIT title that showed the program was turning around. The 2020 Tournament was canceled due to COVID-19 and now the Wildcats are in the championship game. That seems like a good reason to express some emotion and call out all the doubters.

Barnes actually having to apologize would have been silly. The best coaches are great motivators and all she did was back up her team after they pulled off a major upset. She knew they could do it all along and anyone who thought otherwise has to answer for such a wrong prediction.

Next. 20 most shocking NCAA Tournament upsets. dark

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