Dawn Staley ‘invested’ in UCLA coach Cori Close, then saluted Close winning a title at her expense

PHOENIX — On the eve of the national championship game, UCLA head coach Cori Close reflected on how Dawn Staley had “invested in me” over the years.

Those words came in the context of Close being asked about the tiff between Staley and Geno Auriemma in the semifinals. But there was also the context of Close knowing her team would face Staley’s South Carolina the next day for the title.

It wasn’t the student vs. the master, but Staley knew what she’d done for Close over the years. So after the Bruins routed the Gamecocks on Sunday, 79-51, Staley didn’t mind putting the sting aside to salute her counterpart.

“I’m always happy for people who worked hard in this game, who are really quality people,” the North Philadelphia native said. “I want good things to happen for them. And Cori is one of those people who really works at making our game better — not just UCLA, but our entire game.”

Staley praised Close for “always speaking out and uplifting our game in so many areas,” while marshaling a team that was in a big spotlight all season. Expectations were high from the start after reaching the program’s first NCAA-era Final Four last year, and a successful UCLA team in any sport always gets attention.

There wasn’t much room to hide, either, with cameras following the squad over the last two seasons for a behind-the-scenes documentary that debuted last month. (One of its executive producers, Kelsey Trainor, is an Ambler native.)

» READ MORE: Lauren Betts and Gabriela Jaquez lead UCLA to a national title with a 79-51 rout of South Carolina

But Close stayed herself, and her players did too.

“It’s hard to continue to do that while maintaining the job that you have to do every day, but she finds the time,” Staley said. “So, you know, although we didn’t win, I can swallow it, because we lost to a really good human being and a good team that represents women’s basketball well.”

Close showed that again in her postgame remarks. She spoke repeatedly about her players’ character, nearly getting choked up at one point about how much that meant to her.

“It’s not about me, it’s about watching these incredible young women be dream chasers, to watch them grow in ways that they will remember and it will stick with them for the rest of their lives,” she said. “There’s a lot of times where we wondered if it could be true. I said I wanted to find uncommon, courageous women that were willing to make uncommon choices, that maybe, possibly, could yield an uncommon result. And today it did.”

» READ MORE: Dawn Staley didn’t want to play for Pat Summitt — ‘she’s too much like my mom’ — but didn’t mind losing to her either

It took Close 15 seasons as a head coach, all at UCLA, to win a national championship. Staley felt a connection to that, too, having spent 17 years at Temple and South Carolina before cutting down the nets for the first time.

“That’s what you want,” Staley said. “You don’t want to be given anything — you want to work for it. Fifteen years is a long time that you’ve dedicated to young people and to our game, and the game finally paid her back.”

She recalled how when South Carolina reached its first Final Four in 2015, a friend texted her, “‘What’s delayed is not denied.” Two years later, the Gamecocks won their first of three titles.

“I know the feeling in their locker room,” Staley said. “You’re just full, because you’ve reached the mountaintop, and you’ve done it the right way. And when it’s like that, it’s incredibly gratifying.”

» READ MORE: Geno Auriemma’s confrontation with Dawn Staley overshadowed her reaching a fifth national title game as a coach

Staley’s spirit extended through a question to her about a report on ESPN’s broadcast that Auriemma reached out to her to apologize, after his initial apology for criticizing Staley didn’t mention her by name.

Staley said she hadn’t heard from Auriemma, but admitted she had “800 text messages” to read, and didn’t know if some were from him.

“It’s UCLA’s day, and let’s keep it UCLA, them winning the national championship,” she said. “Again, I will address all of that at another time, just not this weekend. We’re not going to damper UCLA’s day with it. We can talk about South Carolina, us losing; we can talk about UCLA winning the national championship, and what’s great about our game today.”

As for the players, UCLA showed why it believed it was the nation’s best team for much of the season.

» READ MORE: How UCLA was left just short of the No. 1 overall seed

Superstar center Lauren Betts, the Final Four’s Most Outstanding player, had 14 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and countless more plays that impacted the action at both ends of the floor.

Fellow senior Gabriela Jaquez had 21 points and 10 rebounds in her final college game, with her UCLA-alum brother Jaime Jaquez Jr. of the Miami Heat among the thousands of Bruins fans in the stands.

Three more seniors joined them in double figures: Gianna Kneepkens with 15 points, and Kiki Rice and Charlisse Leger-Walker with 10 each. They all fulfilled Staley’s advance warning about the depth of UCLA’s talent, and for as much as her players heard it, they were simply overwhelmed.

This Bruins squad plays with great joy, too. Betts and other players like to join the cheerleaders for a dance routine, and they did again Sunday. At their open practice Saturday, the players did that, then danced among themselves, and were happy to sign lots of autographs when they came off the court.

» READ MORE: In a season of change for South Jersey’s Hannah Hidalgo, she led Notre Dame to new heights

Some teams wouldn’t be so loose in such a high-pressure moment, but this team got the balance just right.

“I think that’s why we’re able to show up and do what we do all the time,” Betts said. “You can still show up and do your job and be serious and compete, but this is a long journey that we’ve been on together, and I think you can find the fun in all of it. And what an amazing way to finish off this season with a national championship, and knowing that we did everything to get there, basketball-wise and we also just enjoyed each other.”

Jaquez added that “just the joy we have, and the love we have for each other, has really motivated us this whole season.”

She, Betts, and Leger-Walker showed it one more time when they danced on the podium after the trophy ceremony.

“Because we just want to do it for each other,” Jaquez said. “And that just made us so special, I think, and is why we’ve been so successful this whole season.”

» READ MORE: Villanova’s time on the dance floor didn’t last long, but Denise Dillon and Co. are determined to be back

The players will go their separate ways soon, and many will likely go to the WNBA. Betts, Jaquez, Kneepkens, Leger-Walker, and Rice could all be first-round draft picks, and they no doubt raised their stocks even higher Sunday.

But the memories of this team will live for a long time, in Los Angeles and beyond, and for good reason.