Call Dawn Staley a villain if you want. She’ll just keep winning. | Mike Jensen

LEXINGTON, Ky. — As Dawn Staley stood on the court in front of her bench, nobody inside Memorial Coliseum seemed to care that this woman had coached a United States Olympic team to glory, had herself once carried the American flag into the opening ceremony of the 2004 Olympics. They certainly knew, but did not care, that Staley currently coaches the top-ranked women’s college basketball team in the nation.

“Get off the court!”

Even Kentucky’s band, instruments in hand, stood yelling at Staley, who was miffed that a referee hadn’t seen a signal for a timeout.

A big voice let loose from the bleachers: “Hey, shut up over there!”

» READ MORE: Bruiser Flint makes himself home at Kentucky

It all raises the question: Is it possible for Staley to be a villain in her sport? Isn’t that a usual requirement for dominant coaches in college hoops? Geno Auriemma always has played that part easily. Pat Summitt and Muffet McGraw had no problem pulling it off. On the men’s side, John Calipari and Mike Krzyzewski, zero problem. It’s one of their enduring traits, the ire they stir up from opposing fans.

But Staley?

Mind you, this coach made in North Philly, already a national champion with the Gamecocks, isn’t out there searching for friends. After a play she doesn’t like, Staley foot-stomps with the best of them. She spends much of her time looking annoyed at what she’s seeing on the court from her own players even as her team builds a lead.

Can opposing fans actually dislike her?

Let’s go into the stands at halftime to find out. An entirely scientific survey of seven fans, each dressed in blue. Like or dislike Dawn Staley? And why?

“I think she’s arrogant,’’ said the first person asked. “She’s a good coach. But that’s the way she comes off.”

So … like or dislike?

“Dislike,” this woman said.

Hmm, maybe this will get interesting. But let’s look at that – Dawn Staley, arrogant? I’m not sure any jury of her peers would find her guilty on that count. A jury of journalists would render a quick acquittal.

Maybe there’s a perceived arrogance just by the simple fact she’s always winning? But after this game, when Staley was compelled to put her starters back in to close out a victory, she gave full respect to the UK players who had forced the move.

That woman with the thumbs down turned out to be the anomaly.

“She’s a legend … she understands women’s basketball like nobody else could.”

From a certain angle, this fan closer to the court nailed it. Staley started coaching Temple when she was still playing in the WNBA, where she was a six-time All-Star, after being a two-time NCAA player of the year. She has won Olympic gold medals as a starting point guard, assistant coach, and head coach.

“I feel like refs are intimidated …”

That was not a thumbs down. “Like Coach Cal or K,” this fan added, giving a thumbs up.

» READ MORE: From North Philly to Tokyo: Dawn Staley makes her debut as the U.S. Olympic women’s head basketball coach

On this front, Staley absolutely will work the refs as hard as anybody. After one of her players was called for a foul on the offensive end, Staley stood and asked, “Did she contact first? Did she actually make contact first?” If she thinks an opposing player pushed off, she doesn’t mind demonstrating such a thing a couple of times for a referee’s future understanding.

“As a Kentucky fan, I do have to boo her … "

That right there might be the winning answer. Isn’t it a given that hot-shot visiting coaches are supposed to be booed? The young man who said that, Derek Combs, was the same one who was out of his seat in the late minutes yelling, “Get off the court!”

“I respect her,” Combs had said at halftime.

“She represents the SEC well.”

There’s an indisputable point. Since Tennessee legend Pat Summitt retired, the SEC baton has been successfully passed, Staley grabbing it most firmly. South Carolina won the SEC tournament six of the last seven seasons, and has been regular-season champion five times since 2014. In addition to winning the 2017 NCAA title, South Carolina reached the Final Four in 2015 and 2021 and was ranked first in the country when the tournament was canceled in 2020 because of the pandemic.

Beyond that, South Carolina’s women outdraw the men, outdraw all the women’s teams and most men’s teams nationally.

“She doesn’t care what people think about her.”

No reason why she should. Then again, this might not be the best gym to find folks who don’t like her.

“Try Missouri,” said several SEC types.

That’s not just because Missouri actually beat South Carolina this season for the Gamecocks’ only loss to date. There has been some ugliness in the past. After South Carolina had beaten Missouri at home, Missouri’s athletic director said in a radio interview that Missouri players had been spit on by the crowd and “called the N-word and things like that.” He then said, “It was not a good environment, and unfortunately, I think Coach Staley promoted that kind of atmosphere.”

Staley sued that AD, Jim Sterk, for slander, and there was a $50,000 settlement, Missouri agreeing to pay half to a charity of Staley’s choice and half for her attorneys’ fees.

Let’s assume none of that is forgotten at Missouri. It does go a bit further there. Staley was ejected once and gave the crowd a sarcastic smile and wave on her way off the court. The Mizzou folks remember it all and do their best to incite her.

All neither here nor there at a place like Kentucky. Inside Memorial Coliseum, it’s hard not to look at Staley as an iconic figure. It should be impossible. Just outside the front door there was one of those historic markers noting that Adolph Rupp worked inside those walls, winning four NCAA titles, and won or tied “SEC crown 27 times,” among other feats.

The sign fails to note that Rupp ever had only one Black player on his team. He’d tried to recruit several more stars such as Wes Unseld and Butch Beard, but his record on this front was historically dismal. It was certainly noteworthy that inside the arena, on a February night in 2022, the University of Kentucky and University of South Carolina women were playing while both were led by Black women, one on top of the league and the nation.

Dawn Staley, a villain? In a historical context, no, not possible. In Philly? That’s idiotic. But the road is the road in conference play. After South Carolina got past Kentucky, Staley, asked about putting her starters back in, whether that was a hard or easy decision, said, “We wanted to win the game. … I didn’t want to put them back in. But we had to do what we had to do to win the basketball game.”

Walking back to the court, Staley was asked if she ever senses she is a villain out there in SEC land. Not that she cares, but whether she sees it.

“Yeah, we are the hunted,” Staley said.

But her personally?

“Me, I don’t know,” she said. “I don’t care. …”

Right then, she got to the court. A few UK faithful had stuck around.

“Coach Staley, can I get a picture?”

“You ready?” she said back.

A woman moved in, photo taken.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Another request. A little group. This was maybe half an hour after the game.

“You ready?” Staley asked.

Staley said she knows some places don’t particularly like her.

“A villain?” she asked, laughing.

Hard to picture, admittedly.

“Hard for me to picture too,” Staley said. “I’m sweeeet.”

She busted up laughing at that, headed for the bus. When they inevitably put a historical marker outside her own arena at South Carolina, they can note all Staley’s accomplishments.

Except it won’t say this: She couldn’t pull off being a proper villain.