How Dawn Staley, A'ja Wilson brought Joyce Edwards to South Carolina women's basketball

CAMDEN — South Carolina women's basketball coach Dawn Staley is good at keeping secrets. She had to wait a long three days between learning that No. 2 prospect Joyce Edwards was committing and the Camden star's announcement Wednesday.

It was the top-ranked Gamecocks' 114-76 victory over No. 19 Maryland on Sunday that sealed the deal for Edwards, who originally planned to wait until the regular signing period opened in April to make her decision. She got to meet South Carolina legend A'ja Wilson, who attended the game for former teammate Tiffany Mitchell's jersey retirement, and said Wilson made a big impression.

"Me and A'ja had a good conversation at halftime," Edwards said. "All of the returning players there were really cool, but I had a conversation with A'ja specifically, because we play the most similar. She gave me a lot of good advice."

Edwards chose South Carolina over a top three that also included reigning national champion LSU and in-state rival Clemson. Despite sporting orange nail polish for her commitment, she said she had them done Saturday before the Maryland game and unintentionally faked out the crowd awaiting her announcement.

"My top three schools were all kind of the whole package for me, but I knew I wanted to win as many national championships as possible, and Dawn really convinced me she can get me to that level," Edwards said. "I also feel like her coaching and her reliability also pushed me there. I know I can count on her for anything."

Edwards said Staley appeared close to tears of joy after she made her commitment privately Sunday, putting her head down for several moments processing the shock. The Gamecocks coach now has signed every nationally ranked top-35 prospect from the state since 2014 and seven of 10 since she took over the program in 2008.

The Camden star said it was Staley's longtime belief in her and her persistence in fighting for her during the recruiting process that made her feel certain in her decision. The Gamecocks, who offered Edwards when she was in seventh grade, were the first Power Five team to do so.

South Carolina does not have the specific engineering major Edwards plans to pursue, and academics were a priority for her, what with her 5.1 high school GPA. Staley worked out a way that she still could get the right degree through the university's honors college.

"She came after me hard, because originally I wasn't going to go to South Carolina," Edwards said. "They didn't have my major, but she tried her hardest and found ways to do it so I can get both experiences for my academics and athletics. It was just how hard she worked to not give up (on me)."

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The Gamecocks also got an assist from sophomore Chloe Kitts, who won a gold medal with Edwards at the U19 FIBA World Cup this past summer. Kitts campaigned hard and attended Edwards' commitment announcement, but she said the decision was as much a surprise to her as anyone.

"The whole time during USA Basketball I was in her ear like South Carolina, South Carolina," Kitts said. "I'm just so happy for her either way, even if she didn't choose here. I actually sent her a message when I saw her top three just saying, do what's best for you and where makes you happy. If it's not here, then that's OK. Go where you feel like you're going to succeed."

Follow South Carolina women's basketball reporter Emily Adams on X @eaadams6 and subscribe to The Greenville News for exclusive Gamecocks content: https://subscribe.greenvilleonline.com/offers.

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This article originally appeared on Greenville News: How A'ja Wilson got Joyce Edwards to choose South Carolina basketball