Columbia, SC (My Sportsbook) - South Carolina has named Dawn Staley its new women's basketball coach. Staley will be officially introduced Saturday after the school's Board of Trustees approves the contract. The University of Virginia graduate spent the past eight seasons at Temple in her hometown of Philadelphia and led the Owls to a record of 172-80. She guided the school to six NCAA Tournament appearances and four Atlantic 10 Tournament titles. Staley, who just turned 38 years old on Sunday, is also an assistant coach for the U.S. National Team that will head to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. She has been on the USA Basketball staff since February 2006, helping the team to a gold medal at the 2007 World Championships in Chile. In addition to her coaching abilities, Staley was a five-time All-Star as a player in the WNBA and was a member of Olympic gold medal teams for the United States in 1996, 2000 and 2004. Staley replaces Susan Walvius, who resigned in April after 11 seasons and a record of 165-160 with the Gamecocks. |
