Gamecocks coach Dawn Staley pushes back at style of play critics following loss to Iowa: 'We're not thugs’

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The South Carolina Gamecocks entered Friday night’s women’s NCAA Final Four game against Iowa on a 42-game winning streak and looking to return to the national championship game for the second year in a row. 

The most dominant team in women’s college basketball was stopped in its tracks by Caitlin Clark and the Hawkeyes, losing 77-73 as Iowa advanced to Sunday’s national championship game. 

Caitlin Clark, #22 of the Iowa Hawkeyes, dribbles against Raven Johnson, #25 of the South Carolina Gamecocks, during the third quarter during the 2023 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Final Four semifinal game at American Airlines Center on March 31, 2023, in Dallas, Texas.  (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

South Carolina was the more physical team all night long, dominating the glass by outrebounding Iowa 49-25, including grabbing 26 offensive rebounds against the smaller Iowa team. 

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Following the loss, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley was asked about other coaches calling her team "bullies," to which Staley strongly defended her players. 

"We're not bar fighters. We're not thugs. We're not monkeys. We're not street fighters," Staley said. "This team exemplifies how you need to approach basketball, on the court and off the court. I do think that that's sometimes brought into the game. And it hurts."

On Thursday, Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder called South Carolina an "amazing offensive rebounding team." 

"Somebody kind of just described it to me as you're going to a bar fight when you try to go rebound against them, they're just so good,"