South Carolina women’s basketball alum Asia Dozier is returning to the college game. Dozier, who has been in coaching and/or scouting since her graduation, will join the staff at UNC-Asheville. According to an announcement from the school, she will serve as an assistant coach with the Bulldogs.
Prior to her hire at UNC-Asheville, Dozier worked on the staff of the Phantom Basketball Club at Unrivaled. She made other college coaching stops with the North Carolina A&T Aggies, Buffalo Bulls, and Florida Gators and spent time at the high school level at Cardinal Newman and Legion Collegiate Academy. She won two state titles as the head coach at Cardinal Newman.
Nicknamed “The Coach” by Gamecock head coach Dawn Staley, Dozier was a captain at USC. In a prophetic way, she took part in the WBCA’s “So You Want to Be a Coach” program while at USC.
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During her time in garnet and black, Dozier did not put up gaudy stats. Even still, she was an important part of South Carolina’s ascent to the national stage. She was a three-year starter, two-year captain, and a key glue piece for three SEC regular-season championship teams and two SEC Tournament-winning squads.
At the time of her graduation, Dozier’s 2016 graduating class was the winningest group in the history of the South Carolina women’s basketball program. She and her class helped pave the way for the Gamecocks’ first national title in the 2016-2017 season. They went 121-18 over four seasons.
Dozier also played at Columbia’s Spring Valley High School. Her younger brother, PJ Dozier, was on the 2016-2017 South Carolina men’s basketball team that made a run to the Final Four. Her father, Perry Dozier, and uncle, Terry Dozier, played for the Gamecocks in the 1980s.