Chloe Kitts and Bree Hall of the South Carolina Gamecocks share a moment of joy during the National Championship of the 2024 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament on April 7, 2024, in Cleveland, Ohio. By. GETTY IMAGES
Sunday’s 87-75 victory of the South Carolina Gamecocks women’s basketball team over the Iowa Hawkeyes clinched the team’s third national title in program history, capping a glorious season-long unbeaten run.
Off the court, however, the spotlight was on one special fan, who in an interview with South Carolina Fox affiliate WACH said she saw “God’s hand at work,” in the team’s impressive victory.
Cleone Boston, mother of famed former Gamecocks star Aliyah Boston, has been attending the team’s major games as they progressed through the season. “I went to the SEC tournament, I came to this,” she told WACH Fox 57 on Sunday evening. “I told Dawn [Stanley] I’m coming back,” Ms. Boston said.
When asked why she would make such a vow to the women’s basketball coach, Ms. Boston said her daughter, Aliyah Boston's time on the team had created a permanent bond. Noting that Coach Stanley had told them from the beginning that joining the team made them family, Ms. Boston declared, “family doesn’t end when Aliyah graduates.”
The Gamecock’s third title win, Ms. Boston said, was a result of “answered prayers,” including hers.
During Aliyah Boston’s debut professional season, the Indiana Fever placed 6th in the WNBA Eastern Conference. The 6’5” center/forward garnered 6 points and topped the team with 11 rebounds. She was named WNBA Rookie of the Year and Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press.
