WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama welcomed the men’s and the women’s basketball teams from the University of Connecticut Monday, congratulating the Huskies on their twin NCAA national basketball championships in April.
“As president, one of my goals has been to eliminate waste, to cut out lucrative programs and to make things more efficient,” the president said in reference to one school claiming both titles. “But this might be carrying things a little too far.”
His one-liner drew an appreciative laugh from the crowd of parents and fans in the White House Palm Room The last time both the men’s and women’s teams from a single school won NCAA national championships in the same year was 2004. That school was also the University of Connecticut.
This year marked the ninth national championship for the women’s team and its fifth undefeated season. Obama recognized key players on the team, including Stefanie Dolson, a top-ten draft pick for the Women’s National Basketball League.
Obama also noted that Dolson had challenged him to a dance-off when the team was at the White House last year. He said he would accept when there were fewer cameras around.
Later, after photo-ops, the president consoled Dolson after she stumbled from the stage. She was not hurt.
“I did not pick UCONN to win my bracket,” President Obama said of the men’s team, again to laughs from the audience. The University of Connecticut men’s team entered the tournament as a seventh seed and upset Iowa State and Michigan State before defeating Kentucky in championship game on April 7.
Obama also acknowledged the teams’ for hard work in the classroom and community service off the court. The men’s team held a basketball clinic in Newtown, Conn. at a local recreation center after the school shootings in 2012.
“Finally, I want to take a moment to single out the women here,” the president said. “I could not be more proud of the example that they set for my daughters. They are showing that girls can be tough, athletic, successful and beautiful. And make fun of me.”