Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; LSU Lady Tigers head coach Kim Mulkey and LSU Lady Tigers forward Angel Reese (10) watch their team against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-USA TODAY Sports
LSU Tigers star Angel Reese could be seen holding back coach Kim Mulkey during their recent 81-36 victory over the Northwestern State Demons.
While the NCAA game led to an easy win for Reese and company, the LSU head coach was visibly perturbed by a fourth-quarter call from the referee.
The ref called an offensive foul on LSU’s Aneesah Morrow with the Tigers up by 40 points towards the end of the quarter.
Despite her team being on the brink of extending their record to 12-1, Mulkey came charging at the referee on the sidelines and had to be held back by her star player, Angel Reese.
Her outburst earned Mulkey two technical fouls and an ejection, as seen in this post shared by ESPN, which meant that she could not be present to see her side win the contest.
Regardless, the incident seems to have quickly become a thing of the past, with Mulkey claiming after the game that the referee was right to eject her. She hilariously revealed that she had told referee Timothy Greene that she had no intention of stopping and that he was best advised to ‘toss her’ out.
Mulkey concluded by saying that she appreciated the officials for trying to maintain decorum, before claiming that the call in question was still wrong.
Regardless, the LSU head coach claimed to understand that her reaction was over the top and that bad calls are simply a part of the sport.
Reese, on the other hand, also laughed the incident off after the game. She claimed that her entire team had each other’s backs and that they were all committed to encouraging each other.
Of course, both the player and the coach seemed to understand that Mulkey ended up crossing a line during the outburst.
However, Mulkey’s conduct will surely raise some concerns among fans. It’s nothing new for coaches to be upset at a close call in crunch time.
But the way the veteran coach reacted in a blowout game for her side has surely confused many.
Kim Mulkey and Angel Reese have only recently gotten past their standoff
While Reese was the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA tournament last season, she did not have the best of starts to the current campaign.
The 21-year-old was initially benched in the second half of her team’s victory over Kent State in November.
This was followed by her complete absence in the next game, which was against Southeastern Louisiana.
Mulkey, when asked about the situation, had refused a clear answer and claimed that Reese continued to remain a part of the team.
“You want me to explain why? It’s very obvious Angel was not in uniform. Angel is a part of this basketball team and we hope to see her sooner than later,” she had said, as per NY Post.
While she hoped for a quick return for her star woman, it seems as if the minor issue is also a thing of the past.
The recent clip and the fact that both the stars laughed the incident off during the post-game conference suggests that they have completely moved on.
That seems to be the bonus for fans, as far as Mulkey’s recent outburst is concerned.
