Dawn Staley, Lamont Paris Named Finalists For Respective Naismith College Coach Of The Year Awards

Outside of the UConn Huskies, no school has had as much collective success this season on the hardwood as the South Carolina Gamecocks has had. The women's basketball team is currently 34-0 and en route to their 10th straight Sweet Sixteen appearance, while the men's basketball team tied their single-season wins record (26) and made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in seven years. A big reason for this success has been the leaders of both programs: Dawn Staley and Lamont Paris, who, through their roster management skills and coaching acumen, have put together one of their better individual coaching jobs in their respective coaching careers.

With all that information in mind, it should come as little surprise that both coaches were named finalists for the Naismith men's and women's college coach of the year awards on Monday afternoon. Staley is likely a shoo-in to win the award for the third straight year, while Paris has some stiffer competition on his end, with UConn's Dan Hurley and Houston's Kelvin Sampson also in the running.

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