Kim Mulkey addresses Angel Reese's absence vs. Southeastern Louisiana

LSU went through Friday’s game against Southeastern Louisiana without star forward Angel Reese. She wasn’t seen with the Tigers during pregame warm-ups, just a few days after being benched in the second half against Kent State.

Afterward, Kim Mulkey confirmed Reese is still with the program, but didn’t elaborate any further on the nature of her absence.

“Angel was not in uniform,” Mulkey said, via NOLA.com’s Reed Darcey. “Angel is a part of this basketball team, and we hope she’s back with the team soon. I’m not gonna answer any more than that.”

LSU handled things well without Reese, getting the 73-50 victory over Southeastern Louisiana as Mulkey returned to her old stomping grounds in Tangipahoa Parish. Flau’jae Johnson led the Tigers with 17 points while Mikaylah Williams had 13 and Aneesah Morrow had a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double.

Reese started Tuesday’s game, but didn’t see the court in the second half in what Mulkey called a “coach’s decision” after the game. She scored 11 points and pulled down five rebounds in 14 minutes before leaving the 109-79 victory.

When asked to expand on her decision, Mulkey declined.

“I could, but I won’t,” Mulkey said, via The Daily Advertiser’s Cory Diaz. “It was just a coach’s decision.”

Angel Reese has made a name for herself both on and off the court for LSU

Reese was a critical piece of last year’s national championship team after transferring from Maryland, averaging 23.0 points and 15.4 rebounds per game to help LSU win its first-ever title in Mulkey’s second season as the Tigers’ head coach. Through four games this year, Reese is averaging 17 points and 10.3 rebounds per contest as LSU started the year 3-1.

Off the court, Reese has been one of the highest-profile athletes in college sports and active in the NIL space. She has an On3 NIL Valuation of $5.2 million, which puts her at No. 7 in the On3 NIL 100 — the first of its kind and defacto NIL ranking of the top 100 high school and college athletes ranked by their On3 NIL Valuation — and atop the On3 College Women’s Basketball NIL Rank. Her recent deals include a contract with Reebok and a campaign with Tampax alongside Johnson.

The On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets the standard market NIL value for high school and college athletes. A proprietary algorithm, the On3 NIL Valuation calculates an athlete’s NIL value using dynamic data points targeting three primary categories: performance, influence and exposure.