South Carolina women's basketball super fan Plies gifts Dawn Staley gem-studded chain
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COLUMBIA, S.C. – Rapper Plies gifted South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley a gem-studded chain ahead of the Gamecocks’ first-round March Madness game Friday.
The pendant, shaped as the NCAA Tournament championship trophy, includes the three years South Carolina won national titles – 2017, 2022 and 2024 – and a studded basketball on the top. On the back it reads: “Dawn Staley / ‘God is within her she will not fail! Psalm 46:50.’” Staley was rocking it on the sidelines against No. 16 Tennessee Tech.
Staley posted a photo of the dazzling pendant on her X and Instagram accounts, writing: “I know you didn’t gift me this piece of treasure for anything but love. I so appreciate you for doing your big one but you always have done it big. Thank you for your love, your support & your organic belief in @GamecockWBB. I’ll wear it proudly knowing our mission.”
Plies responded on X by saying if he had to describe a hero, it would be Staley, and that she inspires him.
"It’s really nice. It’s all about the details," Staley said after South Carolina dominated Tennessee Tech 108-48 on Friday. "It’s the national championship trophy. I like that. Hopefully it brings us good luck."
Plies is a rapper from Fort Myers and a former wide receiver at Miami University in Ohio. He is a known supporter of the South Carolina women’s basketball team, attending the 2024 NCAA Final Four in Cleveland as well as regular-season games.
He brought Staley on stage during his concert in Columbia last May. In February, Plies picked South Carolina to defeat UConn in Columbia as a celebrity guest picker on College GameDay’s debut women’s basketball show.
Olivia Noni is a student in the University of Georgia's Sports Media Certificate program.