Everything Dawn Staley said before the Gamecocks face Ole Miss

South Carolina head women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley spoke with the media ahead of the No. 17 Ole Miss Rebels coming into town for College GameDay on Sunday afternoon.

Here’s everything she had to say.

How’s Raven (Johnson) feeling? How are you feeling? How’s everybody feeling?

“Uh, Raven’s a little bit under the weather, so we just told her to just rest today.”

Anybody else, including yourself?

“No, I’m not. I never claim sickness. It’s just acid reflux, I said, it really is. It’s just…when you get older, y’all. It just happens.”

Adhel (Tac’s) on the scooter over there, still just day-to-day?

“Yeah, yeah. Still trying to figure it out. Day-to-day, day-to-day.’

What have you seen from Ole Miss? I know they had kind of a heartbreaker at home last night.

“Really good team. Just playing well together, got them a superstar, and then they got some role players who are superstars in their own right, because they’re superstars in the roles that they play for their team. Just athletic, long, cover a lot of ground on both sides of the ball. (They) like to get up in transition. Can get streaky from outside the three, can rebound the basketball, I mean, they got a really solid team in all positions.”

Sunday will be their fourth game in eight days, and you mentioned how that extra day of rest might’ve thrown off your rhythm. How do you think your polarity, I guess, in regards to rest, will impact Sunday?

“I mean, we’re really at the end of the season. I think you can accomplish a few things, like, today was an active recovery type thing, type of practice for us. Just did the bare minimum, but the quality of work that we got in today I like, and I do think they like. We cut two things off of our practice and they were a little bit surprised about it. But that’s how you keep them fresh. Like, they were really surprised that practice was over. But, you know, I know the pulse of our team. I know they came in here tired. But I don’t want them to walk around here like they’re tired. I want them to fake the funk, you do it, and see where they end up.”

(Cotie McMahon’s) an example of just someone who fits into a system out of the transfer portal. She’s having such a good season. What do you see from what she’s bringing to this team this year?

“Well, I think she’s a focal point, and I think some people like Cotie thrive in that position, thriving in the driver’s seat. And I do think, Coach (Yolett McPhee-McCuin) puts her in the position of being that person, and everybody else is just playing around her, and they don’t mind. It looks like everybody loves the role that they play for their team, and when you have that kind of situation, I mean, your play elevates, and you do some historical things. And I think they’re doing a great job at showing why they’re in high consideration of hosting a top-sixteen seed.”

It won’t be South Carolina’s first appearance on GameDay, but it will be the first time on the women’s side that two black head coaches are featured in the matchup, just your thoughts on that element to what, you know, GameDay is bringing to Columbia?

“Damn it, 2026. We are still making history like that? I mean, I know it’s probably not the reason why they did it. I think they reason why they did it is two top teams in our league, and our country, that are playing on a Sunday. And, the fact that we draw a big crowd, and the game is sold out, and I think the whole atmosphere. I don’t want them to just put two black women on to make history. I want them to put you to the same criteria that they normally use to bring GameDay to a college campus.”

NEW! Message board for South Carolina Women’s Basketball! 🏀

What have you learned about incorporating transfers, who may only be with you for one or two years? In general, what have you learned, and how has that affected Ta’Niya (Latson) and Madina (Okot) coming in?

“Um, for transfers that have to play an integral role in your success, you have to look at the numbers, and you got to look at it to see who they are and what they do well. And if they fit into what you want, or if they fill a void that you need, then yes, they have to be a big part of it. We lost, you know, a lot of our offense last year and Ta’Niya is instant offense for us. But we knew there would be some transition, because she probably would not get as many shots on any given night as she got at Florida State. But she wanted something as well. She wanted to be able to play with other great players, and when it’s that kind of situation, you know they’ll listen, and they’re here to learn while also giving them the space and to play in those moments where it feels like Florida State, but also play in those moments where it feels like this is what it’s going to feel like in the WNBA, where I have to play with other great players. In the case of Madina, Big Mama, who we call her, her presence. You know, obviously, we’ve historically and traditionally have produced some great post pros. She was looking for something a little bit different, and she probably got more than what she bargained for, when it comes to us. And I think both of them, both of them have probably been a little more stressed out from a mental standpoint, because, I mean, it’s high pressure, and it’s a different type of pressure. Like, there was pressure for Ta’Niya to perform at a high level. It was pressure for Big Mama to perform at a high level at Mississippi State. For what their needs are, for our needs, they’re a little bit different, and then everything is magnified and scrutinized and put out there in these think pieces on, you know, whether she’s progressing or whether she’s the, like, all of this, when you’ve played the game long enough, you figure out ways in which, they can get what they came her for, while winning, while adding some pro habits, and I know Ta’Niya is gonna be better-equipped for the WNBA because of her one year experience here. I know Big Mama’s going to be ready and has learned some things. Even if it’s just mentally. Even if it’s just a mental thing, I think we’ll take them further along than, you know, if Ta’Niya’s still scoring 25 points for us, or Big Mama’s just, you know, getting double-doubles. The mental piece of their game has really elevated.”

When did that Big Mama nickname start, and is she a fan?

“I don’t think she was a fan at first. But it’s an endearing nickname. Like, she’s a quiet, you know, like she’s got a mother’s poise and presence, where she doesn’t really say a whole lot, but when she does talk, everybody listens. Everybody better listen, type of thing. Where did it come from? I don’t know who started calling her Big Mama. Somebody did, and then I just took it to another level, like I usually do. I crash out with it.”

Ole Miss has dominant post players in (Christeen) Iwuala and (Latasha) Lattimore. What is the challenge for your bigs to kind of contain their production come Sunday?

“Um, I think for Ole Miss, it comes down to team defense. Like, if we’re in a one-on-one, all-night single-coverage with any of their players, I do think, and there’s no help involved, it would be a long day for us. So it has to be all of our defensive principles, and making sure that we have layers to our defense. And then from a rebounding standpoint, every woman for herself, because everybody’s got to be a part of rebounding the basketball, especially against them.”

🏀 GamecocksW newsletter: WBB coverage delivered straight to your inbox!

Something that really stuck out was (Agot Makeer’s) passing last night. I’m just curious, we talked about her defense, but was that part of her game that you sort of saw pretty early on in the improvement process?

“For sure. Vision. I mean, she can score the basketball, and then, I mean, she played point guard for her high school, so obviously, you’ve got to have some type of passing ability in order for you to play that position. But yes, big guard, great, great feel for the game. Like she had a basket for us last night. She’s got great, important vision, great feel, great presence on the floor. And, I mean, had she not gotten hurt, I think her progression would have been a little bit further, because she got early in the season, she got hurt in the summer, she got hurt in the middle of the season, but she’s still pushing through. And you actually can see her, you know, and her skillset.”

But how do you kind of approach a team like Ole Miss coming off a blown lead, are you more fearful that they’ll kind of get everything right when they play you, or do you think teams particularly tend to slide and kind of decline after a mental ending like that?

“We prep for our opponent’s very best, okay? Very best. So, that will not be part of preparation. We’re not going to say, ‘Okay, third quarter, here’s where we…’ No. Because in our league, you know, in our league, no lead is safe, right? Anybody can beat anybody at any given time, so we always keep that in mind. And then, I mean, I’m sure, I’m sure the top half of the league wants us to lose. I’m sure of it, right? So, we got that. You know, we want to win this conference outright, and the only way you do it is to win. You can’t look around, and we’ve done what we’re supposed to do thus far, and then we, you know, control our own destiny. And having two out of the three home games, and we do well at home, we just got to take care of home and to protect our house.”

You were in the WNBA the last time the CBA went this late; 2003 wasn’t decided until April. Do you remember back then, obviously, there wasn’t the kind of coverage, but do you remember being concerned back then, who I think some people are now? And do you talk to your seniors about that at all?

“I don’t remember, right? I probably wasn’t in the room. Don’t really talk to our current seniors about it, do kind of sparely talk to our players that are in the league, and it’s mixed. Some of them think it’s going to start on time. Some of them think it’s going to be delayed. I don’t know, but I think it’s good, actually. I think negotiating is hard, but it’s good. Anybody that is willing to bet on self in this space, is always a good thing. A bet on self is both ways. The WNBA’s betting on self, and the players are betting on self. I’ve been a player, you know, and the game isn’t as…the game is in high demand, like super high demand. If you don’t fight for something right now, you’re gonna settle for anything in the future. So I think we’ll have a season, just me. I think we’ll have a season, and I believe it’s going to start on time.”

NEW! Message board for South Carolina Women’s Basketball!