South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley said Saturday that she believes transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in women’s sports.

Staley was asked at the news conference the day before her unbeaten Gamecocks play Iowa for the national championship for her opinion on the issue.

“I’m of the opinion that if you’re a woman, you should play,” Staley said. “If you consider yourself a woman and you want to play sports, or vice versa, you should be able to play.”

The topic has become a hot-button issue among conservative groups and others who believe transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete on girls’ and women’s sports teams. Last month, more than a dozen current and former women’s college athletes filed a federal lawsuit against the NCAA, accusing the college sports governing body of violating their rights by allowing transgender women to compete in women’s sports.