Why South Carolina women's basketball coach Dawn Staley wore HBCU jersey for March Madness

COLUMBIA — South Carolina women's basketball coach Dawn Staley wasn't sporting garnet and black on the sideline of the Gamecocks' second round March Madness game against South Florida on Sunday. Instead, she donned a white and blue No. 44 Cheyney University jersey.

Cheyney, the nation's oldest HBCU, is located roughly 30 miles from Staley's hometown of Philadelphia. Its women's basketball team became the first — and only — HBCU to reach the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament in 1982, ultimately falling to Louisiana Tech in the national championship game.

The 1982 Cheyney squad was led by legendary coach C. Vivian Stringer, who went on to lead Iowa from 1983-95 and then Rutgers from 1995 until her retirement after the 2022 season. Stringer finished her career with an overall record of 1,055-426, leading Rutgers to eight Sweet 16 appearances, two Final Fours and a national runner-up to Tennessee in 2007. She won Naismith Coach of the Year at Iowa in 1993 and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009.

"For them to be led by Coach Stringer, who opened doors that now I walk through, it was truly an honor to wear this jersey and to represent them," Staley said.

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The jersey Staley wore, No. 44, belonged to Yolanda Laney, the mother of New York Liberty standout Betnijah Laney. Yolanda led Cheyney to four Elite Eight and two Final Four appearances during her college career. She is also a Philadelphia native and organized a youth basketball league that Staley played in growing up.

"Yolanda Laney, who wore this (jersey) ... She actually started leagues for us," Staley said. "When I was younger, we played in something called the DBL, and she was very much a part of creating that league to give younger players an opportunity to just come together and play in the summertime, so I have fond memories of that."

South Carolina faced an HBCU, Norfolk State, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, and Staley spent time talking with Spartans players postgame.

"I think we're fortunate to play a HBCU, one, because on the biggest stage, if we're at the No. 1 overall seed, there's so much publicity that's going to be drawn to our game and it can certainly help," Staley said of Norfolk State on Thursday. "It can lift their profile up and make it a lot more meaningful because of the platform that they're on because ... they draw a tough bracket, but they're going to come in here ready to rock and roll and do what they have done all season long ... I hope that our community shows them a lot of Southern love."