Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, March 24, 1992 TAG: 9203240445
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: PHYLLIS A. FAIR SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Long
\ In the four years that they have been together, their love affair has grown stronger.
They've endured hardship and disappointment, but they never have given up on each other. In fact, both put 110 percent into their relationship.
But like all great couples - Tracy and Hepburn, Rogers and Astaire, and Bogart and Bacall - there comes a time when things have to end. In the case of Dawn Staley and the University of Virginia women's basketball team, that time is now.
Staley is finishing her final season as a Cavalier. The 5-foot-5 senior and four-year starter has been a vital component in the Cavaliers' lineup. She has led Virginia to two ACC championships, and she helped the team reach the NCAA Final Four twice and make its first appearance in an NCAA championship game last year, which the Cavaliers lost 70-67 in overtime to Tennessee.
The national championship game was a heart-ripping loss for Staley and an experience she won't forget. It also is one she says she would like to repeat - with a different outcome.
Staley led the team in four categories in that title game. She scored 28 points, tied Heather Burge in rebounds with 11, had six assists and three steals.
Because of her outstanding effort in the title game and the Final Four, she was voted the Final Four's most outstanding player.
That award was one of many Staley has received in her career at Virginia. But the most important award is still missing.
"Right now I haven't really taken time out to appreciate the awards because my main goal when I came to Virginia was to help them win a national championship, and we haven't done that yet," she said. "So, I'm just trying to focus on that particular award.
"I think our program deserves a national championship. With all the time and hard work we've put into it, I think it's important that we don't see what we've done go to waste. I'm not saying our season is unsuccessful if we don't win it, but I think that's the ultimate reward of any athlete is winning it [the national title] or being No. 1 in your sport."
And Staley knows a lot about being tops in her sport.
She has been selected the top female athlete by numerous organizations the past two seasons. But Staley doesn't think she's all that great, said Tammi Reiss, the other half of the Cavaliers' backcourt tandem.
"Dawn is a perfectionist," Reiss said. "She'll never be satisfied with herself. She comes away from games saying where she needs to improve. She might be named the best, but in her mind she's not."
Virginia coach Debbie Ryan said Staley is an exciting player.
"Dawn is obviously an excellent player for the game because you don't know what'll happen next," Ryan said. "She does things a lot of athletes can't do - male or female."
Her ability to get the best out of every situation isn't restricted to just herself either, Ryan said.
"She's the type of player who helps develop other players on the team," Ryan said. "You can see that improvement in Heather and Heidi Burge."
North Carolina State University women's coach Kay Yow said in the four years that she has seen Staley play, she has developed the total package.
"She's a very creative, innovative offensive player," Yow said. "She could be the leading scorer. She could be the leading assist person. She could be the leading rebounder. She could be the penetrator or shoot from the outside.
"In all pressure situations she maintains poise, cool and confidence. She's the person most of all who can get the job done. She's always thinking."
And lately she's been thinking about winning the national championship. It's her ultimate collegiate goal. The one thing that will make her the most happy.
That's why she plays with such intensity.
"I love the game so much," Staley said. "I think Hank Gathers is a prime example. I don't think he would have wanted to die any other way. That's how much basketball means to people growing up in the inner city."
Gathers was the former Loyola-Marymount star and All-American who died two years ago after collapsing during a game.
Gathers and Staley played basketball at Dobbins Tech High School in Philadelphia and together in their neighborhood.
Growing up in the inner-city in Philadelphia wasn't the easiest thing to do, Staley said, but she learned a lot about herself, life and her environment.
"It's rough," she said. "It's not the nicest place to grow up or the cleanest place, but you learn a lesson. Everything isn't given to you on a silver platter. If you want something in life you have to go out and get it."
And Staley did.
She didn't learn how to play round ball in an air-conditioned gymnasium. She played on the hard, grayish-black asphalt courts in the neighborhood.
As Staley's prowess on the court grew, so did her reputation. She soon became the subject of talk in the 'hood and throughout the Philadelphia area. By the time she was in junior high school, UVa coaches heard about Staley and decided to take a trip north to the City of Brotherly Love.
What the Cavaliers found was a beautiful uncut and untouched diamond, and the courting began.
Virginia kept tabs on Staley's career. And when it came time for her to decide where to play college basketball, UVa was there holding the door open, waiting for her to step in, which she did.
Although it was a difficult decision to make, it also was an easy one, Staley said.
"They [Virginia] were there in the very beginning, and that school is always going to stick out in your mind," she said. "The visit to the school is what really pushed me over. The team was great. It was great team chemistry, and you could see it was real and they were genuine. And that's the type of program I wanted to be a part of."
So the Staley legacy began.
And Staley has put a lot of time in perfecting her sport and becoming the best women's basketball player in the country.
If she goes home during the year, she tries to play a few pick-up games on the courts where she became a playground legend. And it's not unusual for her to be the only female on the court.
"I've played with the guys all my life," Staley said. "They are the ones who've helped me to excel. They are the ones who made me the player I am today."
Teaching her about the game wasn't the only help the fellas gave Staley. They also criticized her unmercifully.
"That's good for me because a lot of people say you've done this and you've done that and [were] patting me on the back," she said. "But I think constructive criticism is good, especially for me because a lot of people tend to think because I got all of these awards that I'm invincible, and I'm not."
Her invincibility was put to the test last month when she injured a knee against North Carolina. Since then she has been playing and practicing with the pain. But that's nothing unusual for a woman who went head-to-head against men twice, and sometimes three times, her size in her neighborhood.
Staley learned how to take the bumps, bruises, fouls and charges, but she wouldn't stop playing or let her size deter her. She was determined to compete with the boys and, on occasion, school them.
Staley's finesse on the court was so awe-inspiring that the players had to respect her game.
Her status has continued to grow at Virginia, and she has met every challenge expected of her.
"That's a credit to her," Yow said.
Even though this is her final season, Staley won't be putting away her basketball shoes or giving up the sport.
"I want to go overseas and play," Staley said. "My love for the game is so high I don't see me just stopping and going out and getting a job and leaving basketball alone. I have a few more years of playing.
"That's one of my goals as far as what I want to do and continue in basketball. Also it's a source of income I couldn't make coming straight out of college. I'm glad there are leagues established overseas, and it's an option we can consider."
\ ACCOLADES GALORE
DAWN STALEY'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL AWARDS
1991-1992 Honda-Broderick Cup Award winner (Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year); Philadelphia Sports Writers Association Outstanding Philadelphia Amateur Athlete; ACC Player of the Year; First-team All-ACC; ACC Tournament most valuable player; ACC All-Tournament team
1990-1991 Honda Basketball Sports winner; Naismith Player of the Year; United States Basketball Writers Association Player of the Year; Champion Player of theYear; Sports Illustrated Player of the Year; Most Outstanding Player of the NCAAFinal Four; NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team; Most Valuable Player of the NCAA Midwest Regional Tournament; NCAA Midwest Regional All-Tournament Team; ACC Player of the Year; First-team All-ACC; ACC All-Tournament Team; Virginia Sports Information Directors' Player of the Year; Virginia Sports Information Directors' All-State Team; Kodak All-American; Kodak District III All-American.
1989-1990 NCAA East Regional Most Valuable Player; NCAA East Regional All- Tournament Team; Kodak District III All-American; Kodak All-American; All-ACC Tournament Team; First-team All-ACC.
\ UVA LEGACY
DAWN STALEY'S CAREER
Rank Category Total
1. Career scoring 2,083
1. Scoring average 16.3
1. Most field goals made, career 733
1. 3-point goals made, career 123 of 364
1. Most free throws made, career 494
1. Most assists, career 710
2. Most steals, career 445
3. Most rebounds career 748
Keywords:
PROFILE
by CNB