A Week of Greatness

There has been a lot of greatness packed into the past week. It started with seeing the 11-time Tony Award winning Hamilton in Greenville, SC, on Thursday. And, wow. Just wow. It is still mind boggling that humans can create art at that level. All props to Lin-Manuel Miranda for the writing and producing, but then to think of how the choreographer, orchestra, lighting, actors, costume designer and many, many other experts in their field all work together to pull it off. It is just so cool and inspiring to see. 

Then on Saturday, my kids and I finished our read aloud of the Harry Potter series. So many tears shed. All by me. There will be a blog about this experience and the entire series later. But right now I’m just savoring all the goodness and storylines and inspiration and friendship that these books provide. It is perplexing to me how some religious families avoiding Harry Potter because of the fictitious narrative of wizardry and witchcraft. Didn’t we celebrate it when Tolkien and Lewis did it?! And maybe Harry Potter isn’t as pointed with faith references, but it is certainly just as poignant. If you want stories of sacrificial love, followed by sacrificial love, stacked on top of still more sacrificial love, holding onto faith and belief when you don’t have all the answers, and adding a dash of resurrection to the story… well, you can find it in the Bible and Harry Potter. I am so grateful for this series: the stories, the magic, and the approximately 117 hours of snuggle time it provides.

The week of greatness was capped off when I got a last-minute invite to join one of my best friends at the USC-UCONN women’s basketball game in Columbia, SC. For those who don’t know, these are two of the premiere college basketball programs in the country with two of the greatest coaches of all time. 

Geno Auriemma holds the record for most W’s for any college basketball program (men’s or women’s) at any level with 1,237 and counting. And he has the highest winning percentage of any basketball coach who has a minimum of ten seasons under their belt at .882%. He has led the UCONN Huskies to 11 NCAA Championships and 6 undefeated seasons, and has coached some of the greatest players of all time, including Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore, Breanna Stewart and many, many more. 

And then there’s Dawn…

Dawn Staley has been a baller for a LOOONG time. First as the NCAA Most Outstanding Player of the Year, then as a six-time WNBA All-Star, and three-time Olympic Gold Medalist. And she added a fourth Gold Medal as a coach. She is the only person to take the highest honor basketball bestows, known as the Naismith Award, as both a player and a coach. And since taking over the helm at USC, she has led her team to 3 NCAA Championships. 

I arrived at the game with my lifelong BFF. We met at summer camp when we were eight years old and immediately connected on a myriad of issues, not least of which was a love for sports and the fact that we were both tall, lanky, post players for our respective basketball teams. A good time and good friend, she is highly-knowledgeable about all things women’s basketball, and was the perfect date for this clash of the titans. Mostly, we were there to cheer for women and basketball and to absorb some of the greatness in the arena. But without discussing, we also both wore dark red. 

USC is the defending National Champ and entered the game with a 71-game home winning streak. They have not lost at Colonial Life Arena since Dec, 2020. And the 18,000 seats in the stadium were full of fans cheering and willing their team to number 72. The atmosphere was electric- towels twirling, fans roaring, and the supporting cast was a who’s who of sports greatness. Rebecca Lobo was heading the announcer’s table. Holly Rowe was there for sideline interviews. And College Gameday was courtside. All the buildup, all the hype… this was bound to be a game for the ages. 

Time for tip-off

And then… it wasn’t. USC got stomped, 87-58. It wasn’t even close after the first quarter. But it was still an amazing game to watch. Seeing Paige Bueckers orchestrate her fluid buckets for UConn, and Azzi Fudd dominate with outside shooting, they made it all look so graceful, strong and instinctive. And although it wasn’t celebrated at Colonial the way it will be in Connecticut, this game put Bueckers in the same category as Taurasi and Moore as one of only three UConn players to reach 2,000 points, 500 rebounds, and 500 assists.

So, even with a lopsided score and the end of a home win streak, it still felt like an incredible day for college basketball. So much so that when the final buzzer sounded, my friend and I stayed in in our second level seats. We hadn’t discussed hanging around and we both had substantial drives to make it home, but something about the moment had us glued. And while UConn filed through their tunnel underneath a small but elated group of Husky fans, Dawn Staley and the USC players stayed on the floor. 

Coach Dawn did NOT look happy during the game and my assumption was she would storm off the court to the locker room and give her team “what for” when it was over. But I was wrong. I know she hated everything about that loss. The whole team did. But instead of leaving the court… they stayed. They went over to the couple hundred fans who, instead of walking up and out, went down and in. There were hugs, hand shakes, a few tears, lots of shaking heads, autographs, and selfies. 

Enticed by the glow, my friend and I clambered out of our seats and made our way down to the first level for a closer look at what was going on. Now just a few rows back, we could hear everything. Coach Staley and the players were spread out among the crowd, thanking everyone for their support, thanking them for coming, and promising better performances and results in the future. 

No part of me, after being embarrassed on my home court, would have wanted to stand there in public after a bad loss any more than I had to. And yet, to a player, the Gamecocks stayed in the sting of that L for an additional 20 minutes just to acknowledge the fans who had gone through it with them. The few UConn faithful waited and waited to see if their players would come back out, but they never did. Understandably. They’d had a big game and now had big travel ahead of them.

If you live in South Carolina and/or follow women’s college basketball, you hear and read stories of how Dawn Staley changed the culture around sports in Columbia, how she created a community around it. She says they “Mom and Popped it,” inviting community members to games and getting to know them on a first name basis. She created a city of buy in, such that we were surrounded by fans who were shouting for the players on the team as if they knew them personally and sat beside a woman who’d bought a ticket to come by herself on her birthday to watch “her” team play. That’s what we were watching unfold when the game ended, the relationships and the community side of sports that, in the age of NIL and transfer portals, seems even more precious and elusive.

It is easy to stand in your greatness after a win; it is much harder to stand in your loss and be great. But Dawn Staley did just that. I’ll always be a fan of good basketball and elite programs – including UConn – but I’m not taking off my dark red anytime soon. 

Oh and also… women’s college basketball!!!! If you didn’t know, now you know.

About the Author: Jennifer is an Adventurer, Author, Speaker, Entrepreneur and mom of two who has a Masters in Public Affairs and a husband that plays bluegrass. Her blog focuses on life as she experiences it with a focus on Outdoor Adventure, Business, Public Affairs, Family, and Faith. To book Jennifer as a speaker for your next event, click here or call (615) 708-4301. And click here to sign up for her once a month newsletter and blog recap.