Three things LSU head coach Kim Mulkey said as LSU prepares for March Madness

USA Today

19-03-2025

Three things LSU head coach Kim Mulkey said as LSU prepares for March Madness
LSU women's basketball head coach Kim Mulkey addressed the media for the first time following Selection Sunday for the NCAA Tournament.
The Tigers are a No. 3 seed behind UCLA and NC State, respectively, in one of the two Spokane regions. It is the fourth straight time they drew a three-seed, including 2023 when they won the first national championship in program history.
Getting Flau'Jae Johnson and Aneesah Morrow back into the lineup gives LSU a great chance at making another title run. Both experienced injuries during the SEC Tournament as the Tigers came up short in the semifinals against Texas. However, budding star Mikaylah Williams stepped up in their absence and led the team to a competitive finish.
As a three-seed, LSU will host first and second-round games in the PMAC. It will attempt to make the most of home home-court advantage against San Diego State on Saturday. The Aztecs finished 25-9 overall and made it to the Mountain West Tournament Championship.
Here is what Mulkey had to say ahead of her team's first round game.
Johnson, Morrow back to full strength
Mulley confirmed that Johnson and Morrow are "good to go" for the NCAA Tournament, despite still wearing walking boots and taking things slow in rehab.
"You do worry about but you watch what your trainers are doing with them to make sure that they stay in sync. You can't be up and down the floor with that but you can get some shots up."
Williams, who had to step into the point guard role and produce as a scorer, impressed Mulkey during the Texas game and solidified that holding Johnson out as a precaution was the right move.
"She was missing her partner on the other wing when Flau'Jae was out and you can't make up 20 points but you can do it collectively. I think we tried to do that and we did do that. There were a couple of those games that we fell short but I don't change my mind. I made the right decision to bench Flau'Jae."
"Every time she [Williams] steps on the floor, she gets better and better. She could go down as one of the top players to ever play at LSU but she wants a ring. She's fighting hard to try to get to a Final Four before her career is over and that's that kind of kid you want to recruit."
Postseason experience puts LSU ahead
Johnson, Sa'Myah Smith, and Last-Tear Poa, all of whom regularly start, contributed to LSU's national championship win two years ago. Alongside Morrow's prowess, the Tigers bring a wealth of winning experience to the tournament field which starts in Baton Rouge.
"[It] doesn't matter if she's [Morrow] on that team or not, she's a walking double-double. We're playing at home. It doesn't guarantee you any victories but it sure is good not having to pack this weekend."
"Everybody is going to start this game excited. Everybody is going to start this game aggressive. Everybody realizes that if you lose, you go home. It's not going to be where you tip it off and it's a cakewalk. Everybody can play now."
"Must win" mindset drives preparations
While LSU will be the higher seed in both of its first two games, Mulkey is preaching the "one game at a time" mentality, especially against an unfamiliar opponent in San Diego State. While she is taking a look at the team's path, including a potential rematch with NC State, she knows no team is safe from early elimination.
"We will certainly know more as we start watching film.When you're going into a game and know nothing about personnel, you just start focusing in and fixating on that one team. Let us get through that team.""I will think about things that I will present to them that hopefully will motivate them and details more of who is in our bracket. That three seed has been good to us at LSU.""You've got a lot of good coaches in this tournament. That's good for us and good for women's basketball and hopefully they're going to get our best shot."