Dawn Staley, right on time...doesn't like the White superstar Narrative, again...

Dawn Staley: Bueckers narrative overshadows South Carolina's feats

TAMPA, Fla. -- South Carolina coach Dawn Staley questioned the narrative that has surrounded UConn guard Paige Bueckers and her quest to win a national championship, saying Saturday that it has overshadowed any discussion about what her players have done.

Bueckers is attempting to win her first national title with the Huskies in her final season with the program.

"Sometimes we create these narratives about great players -- Caitlin was one of them; Paige is one of them right now -- and we tend to forget the narrative about what our kids have been able to do, going for their third in four years," Staley said Saturday. "There's a sentimental narrative about Paige. A great freakin' player. Anybody would start their franchise with Paige because she's a winner. ... But when you put a narrative out there, everybody sees that, and it puts us at a disadvantage, whether you want to believe so or not. Officials see it. It's all over TikTok. It's all over 'SportsCenter.' It's all over all of that."

"I just want to put it out there. I can't not address it because it's happening. It happened to us last year. Everything was about Caitlin Clark and her legacy and her ability to win a national championship. Yet we were coming into this thing undefeated, doing something that's unprecedented at the time. We find ourselves back here in a similar situation."