For Dawn Staley, basketball isn’t just about the hardwood. It’s a platform for female athletes to express themselves and fight their insecurities. Staley herself has been quite vocal in this regard, speaking of several precedents, including greater pay for WNBA athletes, but her latest stance focused on something far more sensitive: body image struggles.

Staley addressed this issue in a press conference after the 103-34 win over Southern Jaguars. The Gamecocks’ head coach was asked about Staley’s collaboration with Dove in the 2026 Super Bowl Campaign, which aimed to boost young athletes’ confidence regarding body image. Reacting to it, even a strong personality like Staley let her guard down and addressed it from her own perspective.

“I usually get behind things that I’m passionate about,” Staley said. “I was a recipient of body shaming when I was growing up. Obviously, I’m short, and I have big shoulders. I got a big head, I got big hands, and I got big feet. So, when you’re growing up as a girl, you’re called a lot of different names, and you have to be stronger in situations.”

Staley also highlighted the criticism around one of her players, Raven Johnson’s physicality, specifically highlighting her muscular arms, urging that it’s quite natural for a professional basketball player. “Raven doesn’t like her arms; she’s got great arms. I mean, are they muscular? Yes, but for her to play at the level she has to play, she has to have them,” Staley said.

“So, I got the most compliments when I had arms. So, you have to combat some of the things that are being said about women. Athletes have to do certain things to compete at a high level. I mean, the more young girls hear the body-shaming names, the more we have to combat that with the opposite.”

This assessment was one of the few moments when Staley shifted from her stern head-coaching persona to a calming mentor for young female athletes.

Staley’s Dove campaign is one of the prime examples of her fight against these issues, where she collaborated with the likes of Billie Jean King and Alyssa Thompson to raise awareness against this issue.

Staley’s role as a mentor extends from defending her players off the court to preparing them for the battles on it. Fresh off her powerful message on body positivity, she had to immediately refocus her top-seeded Gamecocks for their first-round March Madness test.

The South Carolina Gamecocks’ first-round game was a major talking point. With a 69-point win, the Gamecocks clinched one of the biggest blowout defeats of the March Madness. Joyce Edwards headlined the win with 27 points and 8 rebounds. Tessa Johnson complemented her perfectly with a double-double of 10 rebounds and 14 rebounds as they move to the second round of the Championship.

Dawn Staley Draws the Roadmap for South Carolina’s Way Ahead at March Madness

Despite being a No. 1 seed in March Madness, South Carolina’s path to the title is anything but easy. The Sacramento 4 bracket they’re in is one of the toughest in the tournament, featuring teams like Iowa and Michigan State. The Southern Jaguars were their first test, and possibly the most convenient one.

And Dawn Staley knows quite well that it isn’t just the performance on the day that matters. “We’re going to have a game between Clemson and USC. It’s going to be a real game like on Monday. I’m watching Oklahoma and Michigan State. I’m watching Iowa, like all the teams in the bracket. We look a little bit different in the first half, so we just got to find a way to elevate our play.”

As reality set in, USC defeated Clemson in a 71-67 overtime win and will face the Gamecocks in the second round. The Trojans will pose a different sort of collective threat for Staley’s team. Even in the absence of JuJu Watkins, freshman Jazzy Davidson has filled the shoes perfectly. A glimpse of it was also evident in the Clemson game, where Davidson chipped in with 31 points and 6 on the boards.

If the Gamecocks manage to win the game, they will advance to the Sweet 16 to face the winner of the Oklahoma-Michigan State game. These are some strong candidates that Staley must be wary of. And as she said in the interview, she isn’t just sitting out; she’s assessing her opponents from the drawing board, so that when the time comes, she isn’t short of any tricks up her sleeves.

Their immediate game against USC is set to tip off on Monday (March 23) at the Colonial Life Arena. Who are you cheering for in this game? Do let us know in the comments.