Dawn Staley officially reaches ‘GOAT’ status among South Carolina coaches
Dawn Staley stood atop the stage at midcourt at the Target Center and raised her arms into the air, letting the cheers of the Gamecock faithful who made the trip to Minneapolis wash over her.
After dominating perennial power UConn 64-49 for USC’s second national title, Staley deserved a moment in the sun. Those brief seconds were, at least in part, a ceremony marking her ascent to the peak of South Carolina lore.
“I liked that we were in prime time, one of two last games of college basketball,” Staley said. “I hope it was watched by a whole lot of people. I’m just basking in our glory of winning the national championship.”
With Sunday’s win, Staley became one of just three coaches in school history to win multiple national titles. The others? Those would be athletic director and former baseball coach Ray Tanner and equestrian coach Boo Major.
Comparing each coach’s on-field exploits is apples and oranges. It’s not really possible. But where Staley differs from a Tanner or Major is her appeal in the wider sports world. Women’s basketball, as many battles as it fights for more extensive media coverage, has visibility that college baseball and equestrian lack.
Staley, at just 51, had already reached borderline transcendent status. A second national title simply cemented that. She’s a figurehead for the sport. Everything she says and does, whether one agrees with it or not, is news.
She’s that kind of figure.
Staley inherited a program at South Carolina that needed revamping. It had a handful of highs, notably a Sweet 16 under Nancy Wilson and an Elite Eight appearance courtesy of Susan Walvius. But women’s basketball success hadn’t been sustained at South Carolina.
The early years of Staley’s tenure ebbed and flowed. The Gamecocks finished under .500 in each of her first two seasons. They barely cleared that mark with an 18-15 campaign in 2010-11. It was a slow build, but it reached a crescendo.
South Carolina hasn’t missed the NCAA tournament since 2011-12. It reached at least the second round in every single one of those appearances. It landed in the Elite Eight on five of those occasions. Twice — including Sunday — it ended the year as national champ.
“We didn’t have dominating performances all of our games,” Staley said after Sunday’s win. “But part of being dominant is being able to win when you’re not playing to the best of your ability. You find a way to win.”
That USC beat UConn wasn’t so much a surprise as it was the way this team beat down the sport’s bluest of bluebloods. The Gamecocks weren’t just better on Sunday, they were flat out more talented.
Staley has been building a monster in Columbia for some time. A’ja Wilson and the 2017 national title team were the first part of that puzzle. No. 1 recruiting classes in 2019 and 2021 added to the equation.
Sunday was the zenith of Staley’s assembling of arms. South Carolina utterly dominated UConn from the jump. Each Husky run was matched with a Gamecock haymaker. Aliyah Boston added another double-double to her national player of the year campaign. Destanni Henderson led all scorers with 26 points of her own.
UConn has been a buzzsaw of epic proportions over Geno Auriemma’s 37 years in Storrs. It owns 22 Final Four appearances in that span. It was a perfect 11-0 in national title games heading into Sunday.
But South Carolina did what Auriemma’s squads have done for years: It out-classed an opponent that had no answer — that started with Staley.
“I told Dawn after the game, they were the best team in the country all year,” Auriemma said. “They were No. 1 in the country in November when we saw them down in the Bahamas, and they’re the best team in the country today.”
This isn’t to discount what either Tanner or Major accomplished during their runs at South Carolina. Tanner, to his credit, elevated the school to an elite place in college baseball. He also narrowly missed out on a third consecutive title in 2012.
Major, too, has and continues to have her own share of success, guiding the Gamecocks to titles in 2005, 2007 and 2015.
But Staley occupies a rare space in modern sports. She’s a largely unifying figure who’s cemented a previously middling program as the elite of the here and now.
South Carolina is a national champ once more, and Staley is just getting started.
This story was originally published April 4, 2022 at 3:43 PM.
