Dawn Staley has South Carolina back on the title hunt during another dominant season.
Despite not returning any of last year’s starters, the Gamecocks are 24-0 entering Sunday afternoon’s game against Georgia. Staley will look to add another highlight to her legendary coaching career by leading South Carolina to its fourth straight Final Four appearance.
Appearing on ESPN’s College GameDay, Staley admitted she was surprised by how quickly a new-look roster has revitalized the program. The 53-year-old said she even considered stepping down before her 16th season.
“Considering what it looked like in June … like, early retirement,” Staley said. “Seriously, I was considering it. Seriously.”
Staley said the players “weren’t in a good place” during the summer.
“We lacked leadership,” she added. “We lacked a lot of things. We lacked conditioning. We lacked a discipline. But once you start forming your habits, they picked up on them fairly quickly.”
With Aliyah Boston and other starters gone, returning players found themselves in unfamiliar leadership roles, creating an adjustment period for everyone. Yet the SEC powerhouse remains on top of the college basketball hierarchy.
Stepping into a star role, Kamilla Cardoso is averaging 14.0 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks per game. Sophomore guard Raven Johnson leads the team in assists (5.2) and steals (2.2).
South Carolina has notched 14 of its last 15 wins by double digits, with a 76-70 road win over LSU marking the only exception. Staley’s squad has a resounding 33.2-point average scoring margin.
“I thought it took a little longer than we wanted,” Staley said. “But if I knew it was going to turn out like this, I probably wouldn’t have been as mad.”