For Dawn Staley, a dominant 22-2 record isn’t enough to quiet her concerns about the SEC’s unforgiving gauntlet, and she just took 60 seconds to make her case directly to the NCAA.

In a pre-match interview, Staley shared an unfiltered take on the SEC’s competitiveness. She highlighted the conference’s gradual growth into the powerhouse it is today, with support from coaches, players, and others.

“I mean, we’re good. We have really good coaching and got a lot of talent, and just leadership put in a position where we are the best conference in the country,” the South Carolina head coach said in her 60-second plea. “And AD’s are making decisions to find coaches that will compete at the top of this conference. So, it’s a trickle-down effect of everybody having their hand and us having to fight it out.”

Further in her conversation, Staley also urged the NCAA to provide greater grants to SEC teams to address the competitiveness they face in the conference. The means of the reward were not mentioned by the Gamecocks’ head coach, but it might be a hint at strategic bracketing and seeding for the SEC teams.

“I just hope at the end of the day that our league is rewarded by the NCAA selection committee because it is a dogfight,” she said. “I don’t know how or what metrics they gonna use to reward us, but it’s unlike any other conference. It is results-driven, but it’s not because it’s hard to be results-driven when we’re beating up on each other.”

Staley’s perspective on the SEC play is quite justifiable. Nearly eight of the top 25 teams in the current NET rankings belong to this conference, with Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks leading the charts in the third position behind UConn and UCLA. Moreover, Warren Nolan’s metric also puts the SEC as the toughest conference in women’s basketball this season, well and truly above the Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC. So, Staley’s request to the NCAA for better treatment of SEC teams in March Madness isn’t unjustified at all, given the competition these teams face to maintain their rankings and seedings.

Thus, with so many top-ranked teams in a single conference, the matches are bound to get tougher, and the quality of the sport will get better. And Staley believes this competitive edge will give SEC teams a better chance of winning the National Championships. “It’s just really too tough. If there is, they’re deserving to be a champion in our league. And it also puts you in a position to compete for national championships when you come out of the SEC,” she said last week.

Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks are in a comfortable position in the SEC play for now, with their lone conference defeat coming against then-No. 16 Oklahoma. Since then, the team has won three on the trot, including a top-ranked win over Vanderbilt, but their job isn’t getting any easier as they delve deeper into March Madness. Moreover, with Ta’Niya Latson possibly injured, the challenge will only get tougher for Staley.

Dawn Staley’s Bumpy SEC Road Ahead in the Season

While Dawn Staley and the South Carolina Gamecocks look to build toward defending their SEC title and keep their AP Top 25 poll ranking intact for better seeding, their tough conference won’t make it easy. The Mississippi State game is just the beginning of the challenge that the upcoming few weeks present to the Gamecocks.

Soon after the game on Thursday, Staley’s team will prepare to host Tennessee. The Lady Volunteers are 6-1 in SEC play, but have dropped back-to-back games, including a non-conference game against the UConn Huskies. Thus, Kim Caldwell’s team will be eager to get their season back on track with wins in their upcoming games against Georgia and then the conference leaders, South Carolina.

With the pressure Caldwell and the Lady Vols are in, they won’t hesitate to leave no stone unturned at the Colonial Life Arena on Sunday. Staley’s side has an 89% chance of winning the game, according to ESPN analysts, but with Caldwell and the Lady Vols’ backs against the wall, it’s the performance on the day that will matter.

And if you think that it’s the end of the challenge for Staley? It’s not even close. Two away contests await the South Carolina Gamecocks following the Tennessee game. First up will be LSU, followed by Alabama. The Tigers are one of the most formidable offensive teams in SEC play and the NCAA circuit. The team is averaging 98.9 points per game so far in the season, the best in the country right now.

To come up against such an offensive powerhouse, the Gamecocks’ defense has to be on its toes to halt their attacking prowess. Staley hopes that her talismans, Joyce Edwards, Madina Okot, and Tessa Johnson, will show up in these games, making her job a bit easier. These back-to-back tough games in the SEC are again a reminder of why Staley’s plea to the NCAA is valid and justified.

For Dawn Staley, the winning formula will be clear: keep the defensive play intact and emphasize their strengths in the paint. But with a flurry of tough games ahead of them, no point or win is for granted. Can Staley guide her team to a dominant position with wins in these games, or will the tiring SEC play finally catch up to them? Feel free to let us know in the comments.