Barack Obama, Magic Johnson among other celebrities heap praise on Dawn Staley's crew after phenomenal win against Caitlin Clark's Iowa
Dawn Staley led the South Carolina Gamecocks to their third national title since 2017, and second in the past three seasons, with an 87-75 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes. Following the game, she received plenty of praise for her efforts, with Barack Obama and Magic Johnson among those who applauded her.
The 44th President of the United States tweeted:
"Congrats to @GamecockWBB and Coach @DawnStaley on a perfect season and their third title! It's been an incredible year for women's basketball, and this team was so disciplined and talented. Well deserved."
The former Los Angeles Lakers star and Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer stated:
"Congratulations to Coach Dawn Staley for leading her team to an undefeated season and National Championship!! This team will go down as one of the greatest to have ever played! The bench was impressive all season long, throughout the tournament, and gave an electric spark to South Carolina’s offense, scoring 37 points in their 87-75 win over Iowa!!"
Lakers superstar LeBron James chimed in, stating:
"Protect Dawn Staley AT ALL COST!! No if, ands or buts! 🔒🫡"
Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders, who is a College and Pro Football Hall of Famer, tweeted:
"God Bless Coach @dawnstaley . You are our SHERO!!!! Love ya 2 Life sis."
Actress Gabrielle Union, who is married to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade, chimed in:
"Lets goooooooo!!!!! South Carolina team has been phenomenal!! @dawnstaley is simply the best!!! Freshmen stepped up BIG, bench was BIG, and the leaders lead BIG!! I love it!!!"
Despite playing for the SEC-rival LSU Tigers, Angel Reese had high praises for Staley:
"I’m sooo happy for @dawnstaley !! As a black woman, I admire what you’ve done! You always checked on me & always loved me like your own! ❤️"
Dawn Staley joins exclusive list with latest national championship
Dawn Staley's already impressive coaching resume has grown bigger this week. The South Carolina Gamecocks coach became just the third women's college basketball coach to receive Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year honors four times earlier this week, joining UConn Huskies coach Geno Auriemma and former Tennessee Volunteers coach Pat Summitt, who have won the award eight and five times, respectively.
Her third title moved her into a tie with Stanford Cardinal coach Tara VanDerveer for the fourth-most championships of any women's college basketball coach in the history of the sport. Auriemma and Summitt once again sit atop the list, with 11 and eight titles, respectively, followed by LSU Tigers coach Kim Mulkey.