Southern players admire Dawn Staley, now play her in NCAA Tournament

COLUMBIA S. C. — Southern University guard Mykayla Cunningham ’s mom, Vesa, loves to watch Dawn Staley coach.

Cunningham grew up knowing that. On Saturday , Vesa Cunningham’s daughter is playing against Staley and the top-seeded South Carolina Gamecocks in the first round of the Women’s NCAA Tournament . Will mom have split loyalties?

“She might,” Mykayla Cunningham said. No. 16 seed Southern is one of two HBCUs to make the Women’s NCAA Tournament this year, a feat the Jaguars have achieved in back-to-back seasons.

Staley regularly schedules games with HBCUs to help promote their programs. This season, the Gamecocks played at Coppin State. “She’s done a lot of things for the South Carolina program, (for) Black women in general, (for) younger kids looking up to her that play basketball,” Southern sophomore forward DeMya Porter said of Staley.