Former NBA All-Star Michael Redd commended South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley for leading her team to the national title game for the third time in a row.
Staley played as a point guard during her college years with the Virginia Cavaliers, spent eight seasons with the WNBA, and won three gold medals with the US national team at the Olympics.
Michael Redd Praises Dawn Staley After South Carolina Reaches Title Game
Staley has shown time and again why she’s inarguably one of the best college basketball coaches in the country. She built a team that’s a defensive mastermind, widely known for elite rebounding, physical defense, and controlling the paint, easily giving fellow top teams a run for their money. She has turned multiple recruits into WNBA-caliber players and even led the Gamecocks to three national titles in 2017, 2022, and 2024.
The 55-year-old has also added nine SEC Tournament titles to her resume, along with several individual honors. The 2026 NCAA Tournament has followed a similar trajectory, with South Carolina reaching the title game after edging past the defending champions in the Final Four.
The Gamecocks broke the UConn Huskies’ 54-game win streak, tied for the fourth-longest streak in NCAA Division I women’s basketball history. Now, if the Gamecocks win the title this year, Staley would become one of four coaches to win that many titles.
Heading into the title round, the Cavaliers alum received praise from Redd, who noted that Staley can do it all as a coach and build a culture that will resonate in women’s college basketball for years to come.
“Hats off to @dawnstaley. She can do it all as a coach: recruit, Xs and Os, in-game adjustments, motivate, and build a staff and culture. Drop her in a desert, and she’d find water…and wins,” he said.
Although it was a celebratory moment for the Gamecocks on the night of April 3, things took a bad turn when UConn head coach Geno Auriemma and Staley engaged in a heated conversation in the final seconds, and the assistant staff had to intervene. In the postgame conference, Staley couldn’t figure out what went wrong and why Auriemma stormed at her, saying:
“You can ask Geno the question. He’s the one that initiated the conversation. I don’t want what happened there to dampen what we were able to accomplish today.”
The 72-year-old was agitated over six fouls called against his team and felt that the Gamecocks gave the Huskies a hard time, especially since his team couldn’t make a shot. He also cited cornerstone Sarah Strong’s ripped jersey and remarked on Staley’s rants from the sidelines.
