The city of Columbia, South Carolina, honored South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley with her very own statue this week, reflecting the three-time national champion leader’s legacy as a change-maker in women’s college basketball.
The 14-foot bronze likeness, which sits just next to the university’s alumni center, reflects Staley’s championship prowess, with the statue showing the coach on a ladder holding a cut-down basketball net.
“This statue is a tribute, but it really doesn’t encompass what she’s delivered for us as a community, what she’s done for women’s sports, what she’s done for young people, especially young women,” Columbia mayor Daniel Rickenmann told reporters before Wednesday’s ceremony.
A legendary coaching resume
After her decorated pro career, the six-time WNBA All-Star and three-time Olympic gold medalist took over the South Carolina coaching job in 2008, building the program into the behemoth it is today.
To date, Staley has led the Gamecocks to nine SEC regular-season titles and nine conference tournament crowns as well as seven Final Fours — including appearances in the last five NCAA tournament…
