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Dawn Staley's Emphatic 2-Word Mantra After South Carolina Final Four Win Says It All

South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley only needed two words to express her sentiment after winning another Final Four game.
Grant Young|
Apr 4, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley reacts after defeating the Texas Longhorns during the semifinal of the women's 2025 NCAA tournament at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Apr 4, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley reacts after defeating the Texas Longhorns during the semifinal of the women's 2025 NCAA tournament at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

South Carolina Gamecocks legendary head coach Dawn Staley is no stranger to having her teams perform when the lights are brightest.

And this was the case once again on April 4, when her Gamecocks squad defeated the No. 1-seeded Texas Longhorns by a score of 74-57 in the Final Four to advance to the 2025 NCAA national championship game.

Regardless of whether or not her team wins Sunday, nobody can deny that Staley has created a dynasty since becoming South Carolina's head coach in 2008. While her first championship came with A'ja Wilson's squad in 2017, they're now perennial Final Four competitors and expect to compete (and win) a championship every single season.

This is why, while Staley is surely excited about this big win against Texas, she knows the job isn't finished. And she made that clear with the two-word mantra she was repeating while leaving the court after Friday's victory.

The NCAA March Madness X account posted a video of Staley walking off the court clapping and then saying, "One more!" four times before beginning to high-five fans.

"'One more'- ☝️ @dawnstaley," the post's caption wrote.

Staley knows that this Final Four victory isn't the end of the road for her team. And given how fantastic the UConn Huskies look in their Final Four contest against UCLA, it seems that the Gamecocks will have a chance to avenge their February 16 blowout home loss to the Huskies.

Regardless, the Gamecocks will have a chance for revenge on April 6, as the Bruins also beat them earlier this season.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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