The South Carolina Gamecocks started their Big Dance participation strongly, with a 103-34 final score in their game against the Southern Jaguars. The Gamecocks of Dawn Staley will now advance to play the USC Trojans in their second-round game at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia on Monday.
During the postgame press conference, the conversation turned to an unexpected subject. Body shaming, and the amount of it she was subjected to during her playing career:
“I used to get behind things I’m passionate about. I was the recipient of, body shaming when I was growing up. Obviously, I’m short, I got big shoulders, I got big hands, I got big feet you know? So when you’re, when you’re, growing up as a girl, you’re called a lot of different names. And you have to be stronger in situations.”
She also stated that she believes everyone in the world of women’s basketball has a duty to combat these kinds of body-shaming situations and to make sure their voices are louder than those who shame players.
Staley also connected her story to Raven Johnson’s discomfort with the way she looks. The coach mentioned that Johnson’s arms are big and muscular, which are needed for the kind of work she does on the court. However, that doesn’t stop the Gamecocks’ star from feeling body-conscious.
Dawn Staley on The South Carolina Gamecocks’ Resounding Victory Over The Southern Jaguars
Speaking after the game with the press, Dawn Staley gave the following opening statement on her team’s opening NCAA Tournament victory. While she praised their opponents’ performance, she also pointed out their deficiencies:
“It was good to get the tournament started here on our home court. I thought Southern did a really good job of defending and doing the best that they can against our team. They are a well-coached basketball team on both sides of the basketball. I like to say, when we were in [Southern’s] position, we used to get out-talented. I thought they got out-talented tonight. Nothing against the effort that they put out there on the floor.”
“Proud of Southern. They should be proud of the season that they had, and they should look forward to continuing to make noise when they play the power 4 teams and continued success in the NCAA Tournament.”
She went on to say that she thought the Gamecocks started slowly in the first quarter, but then they fired on all cylinders, which was clear from the final score of 103-34.
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