The NCAA’s women’s basketball champions, the South Carolina Gamecocks, made a statement in the run-up to winning the tournament, when they skipped the national anthem during Friday’s final four game against the Louisville Cardinals.
The Gamecocks, who went on to win the championship Sunday night, remained in the locker room during the national anthem, protesting racial injustice. The team had been protesting during the anthem since the 2020-21 season, head coach Dawn Staley said.
“I love our country,” Staley told Andscape. “I don’t like what our country has come to, or what our country has been, but I’d like to think that there are people in our country that’s going to lead us more in a unified way than a divisive way, and I’m here for that.”
Prior to the 2021-22 season’s protest in the locker room, players for the Gamecocks remained seated during the anthem.
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Friday’s game was not the first time the team stayed in the locker room during the pre-game playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” In fact, they remained in the locker room during the anthem at all home games and most of the away games, during which other teams joined in on the protest, Insider reported. Friday’s game was the first time the other team stood on the sidelines during the anthem when playing South Carolina this season.
Players for the Cardinals stood with their arms linked during the anthem and wore a shirt by Adidas that celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Title IX amendment from 1972 on the back. The amendment reads: “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
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The Gamecocks and the University of Connecticut’s Huskies were both on the floor during the national anthem for the championship game. The Gamecocks defeated the Huskies 64-49 during Sunday night’s finale.
