The South Carolina Gamecocks have captured the big one by defeating Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes. Along the way, head coach Dawn Staley made his stance on transgender athletes playing women’s college basketball known to the public.
During the Gamecocks championship match against Iowa, the former continued their undefeated streak by getting the 87-75 win over Clark’s team. In that game, Tessa Johnson came up big by dropping 19 points, four rebounds, and a single assist from the bench. Kamilla Cardoso had a huge double-double of 15 points and 17 rebounds to help South Carolina go home victorious.
The Hawkeyes, on the other hand, were led by Clark with 30 points, eight rebounds, and five assists. Kate Martin contributed 16 points, while Sydney Affolter had 12 points of her own. This game marks the final one for Clark as she transitions to the WNBA once the draft is done. The same goes too for Gamecocks center Kamilla Cardoso since both players have just played the final year of their college basketball stint.
South Carolina’s top-ranked defense was key in holding Clark off for the duration of the game. Add a reserve unit that stepped up to the moment, and the Gamecocks finally got the big win without losing a single match for the duration of this season.
South Carolina Gamecocks Head Coach Dawn Staley Expresses Her Stance on Transgender Athletes
Before the South Carolina Gamecocks won the NCAA Women’s Basketball championship, Dawn Staley appeared before the media and made her stance on transgender athletes playing in the league. In a video shared by Dan Zaksheske on X:
I asked South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley if she supports transgender women (biological males) playing women’s college basketball.
“If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports or vice versa, you should be able to play.” pic.twitter.com/SEQCsNiFvm
— Dan Zaksheske (@RealDanZak) April 6, 2024
Staley’s opinion on the matter has drawn several reactions from personalities in the sporting world. Among them is former NBA star Chandler Parsons when he asked that if she’ll play against Purdue Boilermakers’ star Zach Edey if he decided to become a woman.
Although the topic itself is full of contention, it looks like Staley is putting her foot on the ground when it comes to her views on transgender athletes playing college basketball. Whether she’s right or wrong will be known in time once the topic has garnered enough discussion to reach a big decision.
For More Great Basketball Content
Follow me on Twitter at @BeatKit22 and follow us @HardwoodHeroics for more great content. To read more of our articles and keep up to date on the latest in college and professional sports, click here!
