In the few interactions I’ve had with South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley, I’ve been struck by not only her frankness and directness but also her ability to capture the larger meaning of a moment.
Those personality traits were apparent last year during the Final Four as the Gamecocks put the finishing touches on an undefeated season and national championship. Instead of first focusing on her team after defeating Iowa in the title game, Staley went out of her way to acknowledge the impact that Hawkeyes standout Caitlin Clark had on the game’s rise in popularity and what it could mean.
In every interview that week, the former All-American point guard and veteran coach seemed to be a step ahead. It was as if she had been given the answers to the test beforehand. Although inaccurate to say time stood still while she processed each question and searched for the best response, it definitely seemed to creep along for her.
I bring this up because of how Staley responded to Sunday’s 77-62 loss at UCLA. It ended the Gamecocks’ 43-game winning streak and marked their first regular-season loss in three seasons. Her team wasn’t just beaten; it was dominated, from start to finish. For a program as prideful as theirs, the manner in which the loss occurred had to…
