The South Carolina women’s basketball team — the defending national champs — visited the White House on Tuesday to meet with President Joe Biden.
Biden welcomed the Gamecocks at 11 a.m. ET. He highlighted both the rise of the South Carolina program under coach Dawn Staley as well as how the 2023-24 team, which replaced five starters from the previous season, put together a 38-0 season to win its second national title in three years.
“There were doubts all over, doubts all over about contending for the title this year. For the record, this is God’s truth — I picked you to win,” Biden said to a room of laughs.
Biden laid out a few stats from the title run, but ended with highlighting the growth of women’s sports overall, noting that the South Carolina-Iowa title game peaked at 24 million viewers, making it the most-watched basketball game, regardless of league or level, in the last five years.
“Everyone, everyone watches women’s sports now,” he said.
Staley followed Biden’s speech with remarks of her own, saying that the visit was a teachable moment for her players and team.
“Today, my staff, my team and I stand here embodying diversity, inclusiveness and unity,” Staley said. “My hope is that this moment lands on you as my team, as a powerful reminder of the beauty that that can come from unifying for a common goal and doing things the right way.”
The event ended with guards Te-Hina Paopao and Bree Hall presenting Biden with a No. 46 South Carolina basketball uniform.
President Biden gets his own Gamecocks jersey pic.twitter.com/AHwDSnoqgd
— Lulu Kesin (@LuluKesin) September 10, 2024
Biden moved back to the mic to make one final, seemingly unscripted, remark, jabbing the many South Carolina legislators in the crowd. “All of you who hold public office in South Carolina, you better hope she keeps coaching and doesn’t run,” he said.
The UConn men’s team will be honored later Tuesday. This story will be updated.
(Photo: Sean Rayford / Getty Images)
