Dawn Staley's 6 straight Final Fours puts South Carolina coach in rare territory
South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley just advanced to a sixth straight Final Four. See how that compares to other college coaches.
South Carolina women's basketball is playing in a sixth consecutive Final Four game. Coach Dawn Staley ’s streak is now the second longest in women’s college basketball history, surpassing two coaches who she was previously tied with at five. No.
1 seed South Carolina (35- 3) beat No. 3 seed TCU (32-6) 78–52 in the Elite Eight and now plays UConn (38-0), the No. 1 overall seed, on April 3 (7 p.
m ET, ESPN) in Phoenix. UConn coach Geno Auriemma still holds the record for the most consecutive Final Four appearances at 14 but here’s where this 2026 accomplishment puts Staley in comparison. Where Dawn Staley’s Final Four streak ranks among coaches Auriemma took UConn to a record-setting 14 straight Final Fours from 2008-2022.
He also holds the record for most national championships among women’s coaches with 12. Tara VanDerveer took Stanford to five Final Fours in a row from 2008-12 and Muffet McGraw brought Notre Dame to five straight from 2011-15. Now that Staley has passed both, she has the second-most in women's college basketball history.