"Schedule a game on the moon": Dawn Staley flexes rise of women's basketball after destroying Hailey Van Lith's TCU

South Carolina Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley was all smiles after handing the TCU Horned Frogs their first loss of the 2024-2025 season. On Sunday, No. 3 South Carolina blew out Hailey Van Lith and No. 9 TCU 85-52 to improve to 9-1.

The three-time NCAA champion coach was asked about the impact of South Carolina's winning ways in growing women's basketball — given the Gamecocks' rising fanbase.

"Women's basketball is here," Staley said (Timestamp: 2:10). "It's not coming, it's arrived. Every arena that we've played in has been packed. We're in high demand. You could probably schedule a game on the moon and there will be people going to a women's basketball game on the moon."

"I'm happy for our game. It's long overdue. It's televised. This is the place that we've always envisioned ourselves. Maybe some other people didn't have this kind of vision. But the players, coaches and fans, they envision us being here. So, there's no turning back."

As one of the top teams in the overall college basketball landscape, Staley and the Gamecocks are doing their due diligence to progress the sport.

In the 2024 NCAA national championship game against now-WNBA standout Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes, 24 million viewers from ESPN and ABC tuned in at its peak, with an average of 18.7 million viewers in total. This was the first time in history that there were more viewers for the women's final than the men's.

With South Carolina looking to defend its championship this year, the Gamecocks will look to stay on course as conference play is approaching. Their next assignment will be the South Florida Bulls on Sunday in Columbia, South Carolina.

Dawn Staley feels that great teams are gunning for their throne

Dawn Staley was asked how it felt to have TCU on their schedule as the program has made waves this season especially with star Hailey Van Lith on the roster. TCU went 21-12 last season but famously fell off the table with a slew of injuries after a 14-0 start. The WNBA legend talked about how she was excited for the challenge, as it's great for the women's game as a whole.

"With how they're playing, the type of season and team they have, I think it's great for women's basketball to have as many people on a Sunday night show up," Staley said (Timestamp: 1:20). "I just thought it was another great top 10 matchup for us, and we brought our A-game."

With a long season ahead of them and conference games nearing, the South Carolina Gamecocks will have tougher tasks to handle in their bid for a championship repeat.