"Not a one-woman race": Dawn Staley thinks South Carolina star on same level as Sarah Strong for the Freshman of the Year award

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley believes that forward Joyce Edwards is on the same level as UConn's Sarah Strong for the Freshman of the Year award.

The three-time national champion coach claims Edwards should be in the running for the two awards for this season's top freshman — the USBWA National Freshman of the Year (also known as the Tamika Catchings Award) and the WBCA Freshman of the Year.

During the post-game interview following South Carolina's 83-66 win over Auburn, Staley appears to be pitching for Edwards' inclusion in the conversation for the best first-year player of the 2024-25 women's college basketball season:

"I said this on a postgame interview, it's not a one-woman race for National Freshman of the Year," Staley said (9:20). "I got to put a narrative out there that Joyce is doing some incredible things right."

The South Carolina coach commended Edwards for being consistently dependable off the bench despite the tough SEC schedule the team is having:

"I just don't want people to forget what Joyce is doing over here because we're not going to just allow awards to be given out with no consideration from our players here for doing it the right way," Staley said (9:49).

Joyce Edwards scored 18 points to lead the Gamecocks offense in their win against the Auburn Tigers. She shot 8-of-11 from the field and 2-of-3 from the free-throw line.

The Camden, South Carolina, native also tallied five rebounds, two assists and two steals in 28 minutes of action. She is the team's top scorer at 12.4 points in 20.7 minutes per contest.

On the other hand, Sarah Strong averages 17.3 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 3.6 apg, 2.4 spg and 1.2 bpg in 28.2 minutes of playing time for Geno Auriemma's UConn Huskies.

Other standout freshmen who could contend for this season's postseason awards are Jaloni Cambridge of Ohio State and Syla Swords of Michigan.

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Dawn Staley shows concern for longtime South Carolina employee who fell

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley showed concern to a longtime university employee who fell while cleaning the floor during the break between the first and second quarters of the Gamecocks' game against Auburn on Sunday.

According to The State, Staley left the team's bench and walked over to check on Mac Credille, who was taken to the hospital for immediate treatment.

“Mac is family,” Staley said. “I’ve known Mac for 17 years now. I just caught the end of it. I think he fell. And I think he was a little wobbly on his feet. When I went over to him he seemed okay, but our medical staff thought it would be a good idea for him to get checked out."

Credille has served the South Carolina athletics department since 1977. He was the equipment manager and retired in 2018.

The following year, the Gamecocks honored his service and a scholarship is given annually in his name. He is still spotted at the Colonial Life Arena helping out at games.