South Carolina coach Dawn Staley wins Naismith award, first ever to win as player and coach
South Carolina coach Dawn Staley made college basketball history on Thursday, bringing home the women’s Naismith Coach of the Year award.
She is now the first person ever, in either men’s or women’s college basketball, to bring home the top award as both a coach and a player.
Staley won the Naismith Player of the Year award in back-to-back seasons in 1991 and 1992 while leading Virginia to a pair of Final Four appearances. She also picked up the Associated Press’ and the Women’s Basketball Coaches of America Coach of the Year awards.
“It is truly an honor to receive the Naismith National Coach of the Year, and, while I'm the one receiving the award, every head coach knows you cannot be a good coach without great assistants, great support staff, and great players," Staley said in a statement. "So, this award is every bit as much theirs as it is mine. We are blessed at the University of South Carolina to have the best FAMS in the nation. They support us every day, on the court and off it, and it is my hope that during this trying time in our nation, when games like basketball seem so distant, that reading about this award gives those fans a little bit of joy and reminds them a little of what we can all look forward to when we come through this time on the other side.
“To the committee, to my staff, to our players and to our FAMS – thank you – and I can't wait to get back on the court!”
The Gamecocks finished the season with a 32-1 record, with their lone loss coming against Indiana in November. They finished the season ranked atop the national polls and won both the SEC regular season and tournament titles. South Carolina’s bid for a national championship was cut short, however, as the COVID-19 pandemic cut the season short.
The team, while starting three freshmen, set a school record while averaging 82 points per game, too.
Staley has compiled a 305-98 overall record with the Gamecocks in 12 seasons, and won a national title in 2017. The Gamecocks have won five of the past six SEC tournament titles under her watch, and five of the last seven regular season titles, too.
Staley was one of two notable award winners in the women’s college basketball world on Thursday. Oregon star Sabrina Ionescu won her second consecutive WBCA Wade Trophy award, which put her in an elite class of multiple-time winners.
The Naismith Trophy will be awarded to the country’s top player on Friday. Ionescu is one of four finalists, joining Baylor’s Lauren Cox, Kentucky’s Rhyne Howard and South Carolina’s Tyasha Harris.
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