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By Megan Armstrong
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Dawn Staley, the hooper, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a two-time National Player of the Year at the University of Virginia, three-time Olympic gold medalist, and five-time WNBA All-Star. If anyone knows how to have longevity in basketball, it's her.
Staley, 55, is now one of the best college basketball coaches in the game.
She's proved why during her No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks' dominant women's NCAA Tournament run so far — most recently beating No. 4 Oklahoma, 94-68, in the Sweet 16 on Saturday.
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Staley proved it again during her postgame press conference.
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For the Gamecocks' Sweet 16 game, Staley donned a graphic tee featuring Raven Johnson, her star senior guard. At her presser, the Sacramento Bee's Joe Davidson asked Staley about wearing Johnson's shirt and balancing fun with seriousness.
"They're young people that have a lot on their plate," Staley told reporters. "They have a lot of people coming at them, wanting things, right? They want things. For us and how we've operated at South Carolina, we just gotta prioritize, and we've gotta compartmentalize."
Staley, a multi-time Coach of the Year, continued:
"I mean, there's a place for everything that you want to do. It's about prioritizing. For me, they probably call me a little bit of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde because I give each moment its place. If I feel like laughing in the middle of practice, I'm gonna crack up. But I turn it off to get back into where we were. I think they've probably taken a little bit out of that.
I want them to be who they are. That's not always being serious. It's not always being in the gym. There's a balance to everything that we do. We just try to prepare them for life, and life isn't just one-dimensional."
Johnson was also asked about Staley's shirt. Staley asked Johnson, "Did you even notice it?" Johnson said, "Yeah, I see my beautiful self on your shirt. I'm happy she's wearing my shirt."
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South Carolina (34-3) will face No. 3 TCU (32-5) in the Elite Eight on Monday. If the Gamecocks win, and if the undefeated No. 1 UConn Huskies beat No. 6 Notre Dame, it would set up a rematch of last year's national title game between South Carolina and UConn in the Final Four.
UConn beat South Carolina, 82-59, last April to deny the Gamecocks a repeat as national champions. Should they meet in the Final Four, South Carolina could deny UConn the chance to finish undefeated and repeat as national champions.
Under Staley since 2008, South Carolina has made 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, played in four national championship games, and won three national titles in 2017, 2022, and 2024.
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