PHOENIX — Dawn Staley watched the final minutes of the game sitting down. There was nothing to see by standing and nothing to work out by pacing. It was an uncomfortable spot for the decorated coach. South Carolina’s impending loss was not a matter of play-calling or shotmaking or wishcasting. This one was only a matter of time.
South Carolina never led in the national championship against UCLA on Sunday. The Gamecocks were down by 13 at halftime and down by far more for most of the second half: Their 79–51 loss somehow felt even bleaker than its score implied. South Carolina had one of the worst offensive performances ever recorded in a title game and one of the worst in any game, period, for the program in its nearly two decades under Staley. It was a display of force by UCLA. But it was also a remarkable display of the opposite by South Carolina.
