BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU coach Kim Mulkey vowed she won't let a looming Washington Post “hit story” about her derail the defending national champion Tigers at the women's tournament of the NCAA.
A dominant second-half surge Sunday, led by star forward Angel Reese and dynamic guard Flau'jae Johnson, proved Mulkey right, at least for now.
Reese's 20 points and 11 rebounds along with Johnson's 21 points helped third-seeded LSU pull away for an 83-56 victory over No. 11 seed Middle Tennessee in the second round.
Look, man, we're not going to let a crooked reporter distract us from what we're trying to do. Absolutely not,” Mulkey said. “My kids didn't even know I said that yesterday. This team is not involved in any of this. They were in shock when they saw all this on the Internet.”
Mulkey made headlines Saturday when she spoke out against the Washington Post and even threatened legal action. She did not mention the reporter by name, but award-winning Post reporter Kent Babb confirmed to The Associated Press on Saturday that he was working on a profile of Mulkey. He declined further comment, and the Post also declined further comment.
Reese said Sunday she didn't know anything about it, but other teammates did.
“Coach Mulkey has supported us all year, so we have to have Coach Mulkey’s support,” said forward Aneesah Morrow, who scored 19 points. “We have to play hard and for each other – and that’s as simple as it gets.”
LSU (30-5) trailed by nine in the third quarter before taking a comfortable lead in the second half and ending the Blue Raiders' 20-game winning streak.
“I didn’t want to let my team down,” said Reese, who had a long hug with Mulkey on the sideline as he left in the final minutes.
Reese also noted that she could have played her last game on LSU's home court because she hasn't decided if she's going to turn professional after this season.
“So I did whatever it took to win,” Reese said. “And me and Coach have that kind of relationship where she can pick on me and talk to me, like, 'I need you,' and give me the encouragement that I need.”
MTSU (30-5) led 41-32 in the third and appeared poised to extend the lead when Reese tripped over a fallen teammate during a layup attempt and crashed onto the court, sending the Blue Raiders on a break at 5 against 4. in another way.
But Jalynn Gregory's open 3 bounced off the back rim to LSU guard Last-Tear Poa, who fired the ball downcourt, where Reese had just stood up for an uncontested layup.
That play spawned a 10-0 run — fueled in part by Mikaylah Williams' pull-up jumper in transition and subsequent 3-pointers from the left corner — to put the Tigers back in front 42-41.
“One possession can change everything,” Reese said. “It could have been possession.”
Later in the quarter, Johnson forced a turnover by tying MTSU's Ta'Mia Scott, followed with a 3 and then hit a save jumper as the shot clock expired.
“Everyone had to let go, get down on the floor and do whatever it took,” said Johnson, whose triumphant gesticulations after each big play sent the packed crowd into a deafening frenzy.
“We just had energy. I mean, I feel like everyone felt that change,” she continued. “My stomach was churning. I said, 'I'm not going home.'”
LSU ended up outscoring Middle Tennessee 27-8 over the final 8:22 of the third to take a 59-49 lead on Reese's layup. The Tigers then won by as many as 30 points.
“If they decide to play the rest of the year like they did in the second half, they're going to be tough,” MTSU coach Rick Insell said. “I've watched a lot of film on them. That second half was about as good as I've seen them play this year.
“If they decide to do that, they will have another chance to hang another flag.”
The Blue Raiders' 6-foot-6 starting center, Anastasiia Boldyreva, scored nine points and blocked three shots, but fouled out just before the end of the third quarter.
Savannah Wheeler, the Conference USA Player of the Year, scored 21 points and Scott had 15 for Middle Tennessee, which lost for the first time since Dec. 30.
Williams added 16 points for LSU, which took a 24-15 lead before slipping in the second quarter. The Blue Raiders outscored the Tigers 25-18 in the first half and led 36-32 at halftime.
LSU surges back to reach Sweet 16 in wake of Mulkey comments
LSU surges back to reach Sweet 16 in wake of Mulkey comments،
BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU coach Kim Mulkey vowed she won't let a looming Washington Post “hit story” about her derail the defending national champion Tigers at the women's tournament of the NCAA.
A dominant second-half surge Sunday, led by star forward Angel Reese and dynamic guard Flau'jae Johnson, proved Mulkey right, at least for now.
Reese's 20 points and 11 rebounds along with Johnson's 21 points helped third-seeded LSU pull away for an 83-56 victory over No. 11 seed Middle Tennessee in the second round.
Look, man, we're not going to let a crooked reporter distract us from what we're trying to do. Absolutely not,” Mulkey said. “My kids didn't even know I said that yesterday. This team is not involved in any of this. They were in shock when they saw all this on the Internet.”
Mulkey made headlines Saturday when she spoke out against the Washington Post and even threatened legal action. She did not mention the reporter by name, but award-winning Post reporter Kent Babb confirmed to The Associated Press on Saturday that he was working on a profile of Mulkey. He declined further comment, and the Post also declined further comment.
Reese said Sunday she didn't know anything about it, but other teammates did.
“Coach Mulkey has supported us all year, so we have to have Coach Mulkey’s support,” said forward Aneesah Morrow, who scored 19 points. “We have to play hard and for each other – and that’s as simple as it gets.”
LSU (30-5) trailed by nine in the third quarter before taking a comfortable lead in the second half and ending the Blue Raiders' 20-game winning streak.
“I didn’t want to let my team down,” said Reese, who had a long hug with Mulkey on the sideline as he left in the final minutes.
Reese also noted that she could have played her last game on LSU's home court because she hasn't decided if she's going to turn professional after this season.
“So I did whatever it took to win,” Reese said. “And me and Coach have that kind of relationship where she can pick on me and talk to me, like, 'I need you,' and give me the encouragement that I need.”
MTSU (30-5) led 41-32 in the third and appeared poised to extend the lead when Reese tripped over a fallen teammate during a layup attempt and crashed onto the court, sending the Blue Raiders on a break at 5 against 4. in another way.
But Jalynn Gregory's open 3 bounced off the back rim to LSU guard Last-Tear Poa, who fired the ball downcourt, where Reese had just stood up for an uncontested layup.
That play spawned a 10-0 run — fueled in part by Mikaylah Williams' pull-up jumper in transition and subsequent 3-pointers from the left corner — to put the Tigers back in front 42-41.
“One possession can change everything,” Reese said. “It could have been possession.”
Later in the quarter, Johnson forced a turnover by tying MTSU's Ta'Mia Scott, followed with a 3 and then hit a save jumper as the shot clock expired.
“Everyone had to let go, get down on the floor and do whatever it took,” said Johnson, whose triumphant gesticulations after each big play sent the packed crowd into a deafening frenzy.
“We just had energy. I mean, I feel like everyone felt that change,” she continued. “My stomach was churning. I said, 'I'm not going home.'”
LSU ended up outscoring Middle Tennessee 27-8 over the final 8:22 of the third to take a 59-49 lead on Reese's layup. The Tigers then won by as many as 30 points.
“If they decide to play the rest of the year like they did in the second half, they're going to be tough,” MTSU coach Rick Insell said. “I've watched a lot of film on them. That second half was about as good as I've seen them play this year.
“If they decide to do that, they will have another chance to hang another flag.”
The Blue Raiders' 6-foot-6 starting center, Anastasiia Boldyreva, scored nine points and blocked three shots, but fouled out just before the end of the third quarter.
Savannah Wheeler, the Conference USA Player of the Year, scored 21 points and Scott had 15 for Middle Tennessee, which lost for the first time since Dec. 30.
Williams added 16 points for LSU, which took a 24-15 lead before slipping in the second quarter. The Blue Raiders outscored the Tigers 25-18 in the first half and led 36-32 at halftime.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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