Everything LSU WBB head coach Kim Mulkey said after loss to South Carolina

LSU head women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey spoke to the media following the team’s 66-56 loss to South Carolina on Friday. Here’s everything she had to say.

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On what went wrong for LSU against South Carolina

“Turnovers at the wrong time – turnovers. We had critical turnovers, maybe a couple of them back to back. But I thought the momentum shifted there when Raven (Johnson) took it on an inbound – just little things like that that we’ve got to mature and grow up and be prepared for.”

On Aneesah Morrow’s performance

“I thought she did fine. She had a double-double. She’s what, 5-foot-11, 6-foot in there, and she led everybody in rebounding. Hell, we had 28 offensive boards. And you lost by 10, so what does that tell you? It tells you we’re not doing anything when we get those offensive boards. You got to do something with them. You got to score; you got to take good shots. I didn’t think (Aneesah Morrow) did anything but what she usually does.”

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On what Mulkey liked from LSU’s defense

“I thought our defense (was good), and I thought South Carolina’s defense was good. (It was a) low-scoring game. Both teams scouted each other pretty darn good. It wasn’t an entertaining game from an offensive standpoint, but I didn’t think it was a boring game. I thought it was a very good game. We just played our man-to-man like we always do. We didn’t double anybody. I didn’t notice that South Carolina did anything different – just two teams that are very talented going at it.”

On what South Carolina changed defensively to stop Flau’jae Johnson in the second half

“Nothing – (they) just bowed their neck and contested shots and got physical. That was a very physical way (to defend her). They’d have a hand on her when she tried to catch the ball, but that’s the way we defend. That’s basketball. Flau’jae (Johnson) guarded (Te-Hina) Paopao, right? Look at Paopao’s stats. So, Flau’jae had a decent day, too. In this game, it’s just a little thing that usually is the difference. And, to me, it was turnovers at the most critical time that allowed the crowd to get into it, allowed them to gain a little more confidence.”

On what Mulkey learned from LSU on Friday

“I learned we can hang with the best in the country. And I do think they’re the best in the country. I know UCLA put it on them, but I do think… Look, I don’t know that I’ve ever coached against a team that’s got 10 McDonald’s All-Americans on a roster. How do you even keep 10 on a roster? That’s what we faced today, and what a challenge it was. It was an enjoyable game to coach in, and man, was it good for women’s basketball. It was good for the SEC.”

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On how LSU will “get over the hump” of beating South Carolina

“What is the hump – beating them? Well, let me ask you this: What’s most important in sports? Winning national championships, winning conference championships, or just beating a team you hadn’t beat in the five times you played them – which one is the most important? Championships – you’re dang right.

“You stay in this business long enough, it’s a game of runs. When I started at Baylor University, I couldn’t beat Oklahoma. (I) stayed after it, stayed after it, got tired of a sports writer asking me about it. He quit asking me when we caught up with them.

“I know you look for different things. I get all that. But at the end of the day, this is the beginning of the fourth year of my tenure at LSU. And if I ever put beating South Carolina as a priority over natties… They’re too good to do that right now. Dawn (Staley)‘s been here 17 years. But I do remember playing them when I was at Baylor when I had been there 17, 18, 19 years.

“You don’t focus on those things – you focus on the bigger picture. And the bigger picture right now for LSU and for South Carolina is we’re doing our part in women’s basketball to bring great recognition and great games. Let’s keep doing it.”

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On how LSU will build positive momentum after Friday’s game

“Well, let me tell you, I’m not into moral victories, so let’s get that out there. We lost. But it was a good game. You talk about what each of them could have done better, you make them answer it. You get in the film room for a short period of time. And then, you get back to work. You head to Baton Rouge, and you get in that film room for a little bit. Then, you start on a very good (Texas) A&M team that just beat Kentucky at home.

“This is not the biggest game of the year. You all might think it is, but it’s not. The biggest game of the year is when you get to the playoffs, and you got to keep grinding. But yeah, kudos to South Carolina. (They had a) great crowd today. They’re good.”

On whether fatigue affected LSU’s players late in game

“Well, you got 10 McDonald’s All-Americans. Flip a coin – you all can play any of them that you want. (You) got to keep them happy, right? I don’t have that. I’ve got to go with what I have, what I feel in my gut. Fatigue could play a part, but I always tend to give credit to the opponent. The shots we missed could have been fatigue; the shots we missed could have been their good defense. You got that many – who are you going to stop? Pick your poison.”

On what LSU did to stay in the game

“Well, we rebounded. We dominated the boards against a South Carolina team, but we’ve always been able to rebound. There are two things, and I’ve told you all this in our press conferences at home. I learned from the best in the business – (former Louisiana Tech head women’s basketball coach) Leon Barmore and (former Tennessee head women’s basketball coach) Pat Summitt. If they didn’t teach me anything, they said, ‘You better defend, and you better rebound, because you’re not going shoot it good every night.’

“So, our rebounding kept us in the game when we were not shooting it, and we missed shots and didn’t get to the foul line. And I thought our defense made them have to work hard to score the ball. I can’t think of many just easy shots that they got. You can build on that. And when you see a game, and it comes to fruition that those two things were big today, then it makes them continue to work hard in those areas.”

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On whether Mulkey feels she needs more than her “big three” to be successful in March

“Well, sure, you’d like to have more. I do think we have more depth on the perimeter. But our bench was not very productive tonight, and it has been very good all year. But yeah, you’d like to have more than those three (Johnson, Morrow and Mikaylah Williams). I’m going to call Dawn and tell her to send me some of those (players) she doesn’t play. I don’t think she’ll do it, though.”

On complaints that LSU played a “soft schedule”

“I’ve been doing this 40 years. It’s not the first time I’ve heard people complain about a soft schedule. I know my team better than anybody, and what I’ve been doing has worked. I don’t get caught up into what the TV people want you to do or the NCAA Selection Committee thinks you should do. If we didn’t send a message today, who do we need to play to send the message to? We were on their home court.

“And I think everybody got to answer some of those ‘enigma’ questions about a soft schedule or whatever. We won a national championship, buddy, and everybody talked about the soft non-conference schedule, so that ship has sailed. Nobody needs to talk about that anymore. Let coaches do what they need to do to get their teams ready for the playoffs. That’s my goal every time I step on that court.”

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