MINNEAPOLIS — Dawn Staley spoke directly into the camera, confetti on the floor, her Louis Vuitton Letterman jacket long shed for better gear, and a crowd growing around her.
“Let them know who the champions are,” Staley half-yelled as the fans in the stands in the background still hung on her every word. She adjusted her brand new gray hat. “The Fighting Cocks.”
South Carolina defeated UConn, 64-49, to win its second women’s national basketball championship in program history Sunday night at the Target Center. A swaying, Gamecock-heavy crowd erupted in the final 30 seconds as she toppled over in the green Letterman jacket and hit the net score goal. Their players were finally able to get going two hours after a start the Huskies could never get close enough to.
Her first Final Four Most Outstanding Player, Las Vegas Aces star and 2020 WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson, came onto the court and danced with LeLe Grissett, the same gray hat backwards over a bucket hat. She made the rounds and reminded her teammate from Team USA and Louisville grad Angel McCoughtry of her bet. Expect the Minnesota Lynx forward to start the WNBA season in garnet gear. No, McCoughtry is not pleased at all.
Staley’s newest Final Four Most Outstanding Player, Aliyah Boston, called Chicago Sky Champion Candace Parker to the crowd as she accepted her last of many trophies this week. Down on the court, Parker later did the photo work for the night’s brightest forward in basketball.
South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley reacts during the Gamecocks’ national championship win April 3, 2022 in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Staley built this. And take it from Wilson, two of something is no coincidence. The iconic coach has cemented herself and her program into a powerhouse, the dawn of a new era and a team to beat year after year. That they defeated the 11-time champion Connecticut Huskies and handed the Geno Auriemma-led dynasty their first loss in a title game is an allegory of the new era.
This is not lost on Boston. Yes, it means more to win a national title that way.
The story goes on
“I feel like a lot of people use that as a standard when you look at a program like South Carolina and how far it’s progressing and how great it is,” Boston said. “And I feel like coming into that game, the conversation turned to how coach Auriemma was 11-0 in title games. But Coach Staley was 1-0 and now she’s 2-0. And I think it just shows what kind of program she’s built and how great it is to be a dynasty.”
Staley doesn’t see winning two in five years or going to the Final Fours back-to-back as a dynasty. At least not in their time.
“Aliyah and social media, yes, they think they’re doing something really good,” Staley said. “But just look at UConn’s tradition and what they could do. You are the benchmark. If it takes to win 11 national championships to become a dynasty, I’ll probably miss that because I won’t be in the game long enough to win 11.”
She spoke about the importance of being a black woman and a head coach and doing it right. That was Front and Center Sunday. She ran around the media rope with the trophy as Wilson filmed her taking her to the pep band to make sure they were in. On stage before accepting the trophy, with ESPN cameras broadcasting her message, she shouted out to benchers who don’t get much playing time and credited them for everything they’d done to get them to the top.
“It shows you how much she really cares about everyone on this team and how important everyone is,” said Olivia Thompson, a hometown player like Wilson and a former Walk-On.
Players repeatedly cited this aspect of their two-time national champion coach in their confetti-filled rectangle amid family hugs, photo ops and net-cutting turns. Zia Cooke called it a reality.
“I’m great at just being around people who are real, they’re real, that ‘I just want what’s best for you,'” Cooke said. “She trusted me from day one since I was a freshman. Just give me their trust and be there for me on and off the field.”
Wilson cited loyalty, truthfulness, and honesty as the reason she was so close to Staley. They engage in hilarious Twitter banter and podcast recordings that bring authenticity to a space that’s long been lacking.
“When people say you shake hands with a CEO, are you shaking hands with an administrator? That’s Coach Staley,” Wilson said.
The Minneapolis scene is far from Staley’s coming out party as a great coach in terms of wins and leadership. That was already certain. The program has seen its biggest firsts under her, including first SEC conference titles and Player of the Year. The former player worked with local media to raise awareness and took advantage of many media opportunities during the 2022 tournament to thank them for their work.
Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina is constantly packed when Wilson recalls it being a place to reach and touch players in the space so empty. When a “FAM,” as Gamecock fans are known, contacted her in Minneapolis for better vocals, she arranged for him to be promoted from the rafters to the Lower Bowl to lead it. He did his job well in a crowd that cheered for hometown star Paige Bueckers but roared for South Carolina.
South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley and the Gamecocks celebrate during the presentation of the national championship trophy after defeating the UConn Huskies 64-49 at the 2022 NCAA Women’s Tournament April 3, 2022 at the Target Center in Minneapolis. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
She’s vocal on topics she brings up and isn’t afraid to make statements in defense of her players. This season, she continued the tradition of passing a piece of her 2017 national championship network to Black Head coaches at the Division I level this year to be a “dream dealer” for them. It’s a phrase she uses often. With the Net of 2022 hanging from her neck on the Minneapolis press conference podium, she pulled a piece of that Net of 17 from her pocket where it had been all night.
Staley has attracted top-notch recruiting classes with star players, but also relies on team chemistry and a cohesive unit. Boston is dominant, but she alone rarely gets them a win. Defense fueled this championship.
And in the era of name, image and likeness, Staley is a personality who can connect with gamers. In an open training session on Saturday, she danced her way through, sometimes with players, just as she had done all season. She threw basketballs in the air like a quarterback trying to make the shot, a season-long social tradition. Why stop now? She refers to players on her team and long after they’re gone.
“She’s cheesy,” Wilson said of how Staley is able to connect with teenagers. “That’s the best part. She is who she is. She wants to be trendy. And that just makes you want to be a part of her, to lead her, to make her trendy, to be cool.”
Wilson said she contributes to that lead by overdoing it, but had to interrupt her own thought to run upstairs with her phone to overdo her former coach, who is taking down a second net. It’s one that continues the tradition of empowerment that Staley embodies. Most of their legacy. As for Wilson’s trending comments, some current players disagree.
“She’s trending herself,” said a broadly smiling Thompson. “She does it all by herself. She doesn’t need anyone else.”
So Wilson will likely hear these remarks in a good-natured manner. Because Staley’s trend now is to win, get it right, take everyone and let everyone know.
The Gamecocks are the champions.