Q&A: Kim Mulkey talks SEC success, new basketballs, Virginia Tech

A few hours before LSU headed to Dallas, head coach Kim Mulkey met with the media to discuss the Final Four matchup, her big-picture thoughts on the tournament, and more. 

The Tigers face Virginia Tech on Friday at 6 p.m. CT in Dallas, hoping to advance to the national title game for the first time in program history. 

Here are the quotes you need to know from Mulkey’s media availability today.

Initial thoughts on Virginia Tech

“Well, I’m familiar with Virginia Tech. I played against a lot of those players when they were younger. If you’ll remember when we were in the bubble in San Antonio, so I know all about four of them for sure. They’re just older now and just so much more improved.

Certainly you start with Amoore and Kitley. That’s the two main players for them, but they’re not the only players.

Kitley is a problem with her height and her ability to shoot the face-up jumper. She’s not just a back-to-the-basket post player. Amoore, boy, she’s got range and she’s got just a deadly step-back move out there on the perimeter, and those two, I just remember playing them in the bubble and then watching them today and just how much better they are.

But I think the world of Coach Brooks. I think he’s just a classy guy, a great coach, and they’re a No. 1 seed for a reason.”

On the success of the SEC in the NCAA Tournament

“I feel like the SEC in a lot of ways was disrespected all year. I feel like there were two teams that should have been ranked in the top 25. They played a great non-conference schedule, and heaven knows we don’t want to talk about those non-conference schedules, do we? But they never could get ranked, but yet they were doing what the committee wanted them to do and play all those tough teams.

But I knew when we played them, and I’ll tell you who they were: Tennessee and Ole Miss for sure. When we played them, the first thing that stood out to me was they guard you. They guard you. I just think in this league, there’s so many teams, and — was it 16 games that we play? You’re seeing a different style of play twice a week, and you’re seeing the defending national champion. Some schools in the league had to play South Carolina twice.

When you play that many games against teams that I feel really emphasize defense, it’s going to make you better, and I’m selfish, I get it, because I’m going to be partial to the SEC. But when you have four teams in your Sweet 16, it speaks volumes, particularly when you only had seven from the league get in the Tournament. I thought the three teams that lost out, they could have won their games.

It was nip and tuck in those games that the three lost out in.

Now, moving to the Final Four, I think it’s a great thing for the SEC to promote that 50 percent of your teams in the Final Four come from the SEC.”

On the basketballs and the impact of changing basketballs

“I first heard about the ball when I was watching the men’s tournament, and then when the balls were shipped to us in the first and second rounds, I didn’t pay much attention to it.

But then when I heard you get new balls I think is what they told me at every round, and I started seeing not just how poorly we were shooting the ball but handling the ball. You know, our ball handlers coming up that floor and been doing it all their life and all of a sudden you see that ball take a big bounce on you, it’s not the floor, I don’t think. I know the floors are new. I know they ship in new floors at different places, but that was my first deal as a ball handler, it just doesn’t look like it’s smooth.

Then watching some of the men’s games as they got deeper and I thought that is a normal, easy jump shot for these guys that they’re just clanking off the rim.

Then of course the Miami game with us, I meant it not as anything but the honest truth. That was just ugly. It was ugly. Nobody could make a shot. One three-pointer out of both teams? It wasn’t a great defense that was keeping the shots from going in, it was just missed shots.

My description of the ball after just getting it and holding it is it reminds me — I’m sure it’s the best that Wilson has, but it’s different. The old Wilsons that we’ve seen have the darker leather and you can just grip them really good and they just kind of flow. These remind me, for lack of a better description, of if you went outside and you needed basketballs to last for a long period of time but yet good balls, not rubber balls, it kind of just reminds me of that.

But Caitlin Clark can hit 41 with those balls. A lot of other people have adjusted to it. I just think that until I can get a grasp of it with my own team and hold it, it’s a little bit different. It’s different.”

Getting her team ready after the high of beating Miami…

“Just got off the floor. Last thing I shared with them in the middle of the floor was, you’re getting ready to play a No. 1 seed. We’ve not done that. You’re getting ready to play a young lady who is the finalist for not one but two awards. We don’t have anybody on our team that’s a finalist for any award.

Are we satisfied? Are we patting ourselves on the back and saying, hey, this is as far as we can go? Or are you still hungry? And the responses that I received are, Coach, we’re ready to move on and get to the next game.

When you have kids that are hungry and not satisfied to just be there, you’re going to go compete. Whether we win or lose, I know we will compete.”