Dawn Staley made sure to shine the spotlight on some unsung heroes after South Carolina’s season ended Sunday with a loss to UConn.
Staley’s Gamecocks were outclassed by the Huskies 82-59 in the NCAA National Championship Game at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Fla. Top-seeded South Carolina was held to just 34.4% from the field and 25.0% from the three-point line in the title game.
Staley fulfilled her obligations by answering questions at her team’s official press conference. But afterward, Staley had one final scrum with the local reporters who have covered the team all season long.
Staley made sure to thank each and every one of them, while also wishing other women’s basketball programs had the same level of local coverage as South Carolina.
“I’ll leave on this note,” said Staley. “This is our local media. You all have followed us across the season. A lot of times, people ask me to do things on a national scale, and I say no a lot. Because they don’t really know our team. You guys know our team … You’re pretty fair with how you assess our basketball team. … If every program had this, I think we could push women’s basketball forward, on a local level, across the country.”
Dawn Staley closes out her final gaggle of the tournament thanking the local media.
— Julia Westerman (@JuliaWesterman) April 6, 2025
"You guys know our team… you're pretty fair with how you assess our basketball team. If every program had this, we could push women's basketball forward on a local level across the country." pic.twitter.com/TWG0oPdGlT
The 54-year-old coach has had her issues with national media outlets. On Saturday, Staley called out ESPN over what she believed to be a sensationalized headline centered around her comments about UConn star Paige Bueckers.
LIES! Fix your headline please! https://t.co/YUL7AolNqy
— dawnstaley (@dawnstaley) April 5, 2025
Staley had tried to prop up her own team, arguing that her players deserved some additional spotlight for even making it that far in the tournament without a star like Bueckers among them.
Despite the loss, Staley and the Gamecocks have been a model for success in women’s college basketball over the years. That’s not likely to end anytime soon.
