Dawn Staley Becomes First Black Woman To Win Two NCAA Women’s Basketball Titles As Head Coach
Women’s college basketball coach Dawn Staley made history on Sunday night (March 3) after leading her South Carolina Gamecocks to a 64-49 victory over the University of Connecticut.
With the win, Staley became the first Black Woman to win two NCAA basketball titles as a head coach. She also handed UConn its first loss in a national championship game (they had been 11-0 in title games previously).
This is just the latest triumph for Staley, who was named the 2022 Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year after her program reached the Final Four and remained the country’s No. 1 ranked team throughout the entirety of the season.
Staley won the same award back in 2020 when South Carolina’s 32-1 season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Even before the success of the 2022 season, Staley earned a historic seven-year $22.4 million contract extension from South Carolina. She also coached the USA Women’s Basketball National Team to a gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics.
Staley, a Hall of Famer, who played eight seasons in the WNBA with the Charlotte Sting and the Houston Comets, finished the season coaching South Carolina with an overall record of 35-2 and now holds a career record 538-185 between her time leading Temple from 2000-2008 and the Gamecocks from 2008 to the present.
